


Stark’s Girl

by captaincaitay



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Stark!Reader, Steve Rogers/Stark!Reader - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-08
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:33:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 50,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23068537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captaincaitay/pseuds/captaincaitay
Summary: Tony Stark is a good man. He has lost his entire family yet lives his life devoting himself to helping others. Steve Rogers never knew the secret that Tony has kept since his parents death long ago, but it finally comes out, and everything makes a little more sense. Things change for the billionaire, playboy, philanthropist when someone he thought long gone, has been alive this entire time. And Steve has to learn how to keep his secret from everyone around him, without hurting those he cares the most about.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Steve Rogers/Reader, Tony Stark/Reader
Comments: 34
Kudos: 121





	1. Two Peas in a Pod

If you knew Tony Stark then you knew there was one thing that you could not talk to him about. And that was anything having to do with his family. If you even tried to mention anything about that fateful day in 1991, Tony would leave and ban them from ever interviewing him again.

Especially if they tried to mention his younger sister. God forbid anyone tried that.

“No, we’re done here,” he’d say before walking off the set, his team (Pepper at the time and Happy) would follow behind him, and that reporter would never step near Tony Stark ever again.

Tony never spoke of his family, to anyone, besides maybe Pepper as their relationship developed. But it was December now, and Tony’s demeanor seemed to change the more the month passed. He grew more quiet, not being as snappy as he normally was, and secluded himself from group activities. This time around, he was focused heavily on work, and the other Avengers only saw him when there was a mission on hand. Recently, with the news that Hydra was embedded deep within SHIELD, that’s what they were being sent out to do: take out Hydra bases.

Steve Rogers was concerned for his friend. He had only seen Tony this way once before, but what he couldn’t figure out was why he would get like this. One day, he tried to ask Natasha about it. She shook her head, and told him not to ask, especially don’t ask Tony. He understood, but the information finally let itself out one night.

The Avengers tower was home to a few people on the team when they were in New York. One night, in the early morning of December 16th, there were loud crashes coming from the common area. When Steve came down the stairs, a glass cup flew into the wall between the two elevators on the floor. It shattered, rippling in the air as Tony was going on a tangent.

“How could, how could that even happen! The car losing control my ass,” he slurred. Pepper was there as well, trying to calm him down, but Tony paced back and forth in front of her. Pepper’s eyes met Steve and she extended a hand out for him to stop where he was. Steve stopped his movements, staying on the stairs, Natasha had ended up behind him, watching in silence.

“My parents they didn’t,” he hiccuped, “they didn’t have to take her with them! I said I could, I could take care of her.” Tony paused for a moment, looking into Pepper’s face. Pepper could see the tears in his eyes, but Steve would never admit that he could as well.

“If my father had just  _ listened  _ to me, she’d be here with me. She’d be alive, Pepper.” the last part kind of came out as a whisper. She said something quietly to him, and Tony let himself fold into her arms, and soft cries filled the room. Natasha placed her hand on Steve’s shoulder, motioning for him to follow her back upstairs, away from the scene unfolding before them.

That was when Steve learned that Howard and Maria had also had a little girl, who was with them when the crash happened. She was only fairly young when the crash happened. Natasha told him that Tony and his sister were really close when Tony was home from his schools, two peas in a pod, at least that’s what she read in the past, not that Tony would ever speak of it. Natasha also told him that if he were ever to mention it, the outcome would not be good.

Steve looked into it a bit more, and with each piece of information his heart dropped further into his stomach. Howard and Maria welcomed you into the world as a healthy baby girl, and Tony was seen carrying you into the family home a few days later. Over the next few years as Tony grew older and went to several ivy league schools, he would come home most of the press that was released was of him spending time with his little sister, whose face was blurred in every photo. They were extremely close. Steve had to close his computer, and try and move on with his day with that information running rampant in his head. He could never tell Tony about that day in 1991. For Tony’s sake.

It was spring now, Tony returned back to his normal self but now knowing what he knows, Steve looked at him a little differently. From what he read, he had never seen Tony as intimate with anyone before (with no offense to Pepper), and that changed some of the things he said to his friend.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Tony said, snapping Steve out of his thoughts.

“I’m not looking at you in any way,” he replied earning a grin from the man close to him.

“You look like you’re falling in love with me, but you’re too scared to admit it because I’m your boss. Have you ever seen Two Weeks Notice?”

Steve shook his head a slight smile crossing his lips. They were headed on a quick mission, get in, get out, and kick some Hydra ass, they as in Steve, Tony, Natasha, and Sam. This was their third base this month alone, but with the rate they were going there weren’t going to be many left in the Hydra channel.

“Alright boys, we’re reaching the drop point in a few minutes,” Natasha said from the front of the quinjet. Tony was quick to release his buckle from his body, and stood to move near his suit.

“Well that’s my cue,” Tony commented walking backwards into his suit, “try not to miss me too much Steve,” his words turned more automatic as he stepped back into his suit and it closed around him. Steve rolled his eyes, and Tony shockingly put his hands over his heart as if he was shocked. But then he wiggled his fingers at him, and Natasha opened the back of the plane and Tony dropped out of it flawlessly.

“He’s in a good mood today”, Sam commented, as he was strapping his Falcon wings on.

“He sure is,” Steve replied, and nodded at his new friend who followed Tony’s lead, disappearing into the air.

“I’m bringing her down,” Nat called over the wind. Steve released himself from his constraints and slid his helmet over his eyes. He took the time to tighten his gloves as Natasha lowered the plane to the ground. There was gunfire nearby, some ricocheting off the metal exterior. 

“Always making a mess, you boys,” she said in a joking manner, walking past Steve ready to fight. 

It was supposed to be an easy job. Get in, get out, take out the bad guys. That was always Tony’s tag line for these kinds of missions. This time though, there were more Hydra agents than anticipated, which could only mean one thing.

They were hiding something.

“These guys are really starting to piss me off,” Tony commented over their com links, and without hesitating, “Jarvis claims there to be possible hostage inside.”

“Romanoff and I will storm the building,” Steve managed between throws of his shield, ricocheting off an enemy and back to him, “watch our backs until we give you word to join us.”

“Sure thing, Cap,” Sam replied in his ear. Natasha nodded her readiness to Steve, and he kicked the door in, using his shield to cover them. He moved first, each foot softly moving in front of the other. They were like lions looking for their prey.

The first man that tried to come around the corner, Nat was on him like a predator. Her moves were swift and like fluid, knocking them out and leaving them on the ground. But they pressed on, glancing around corners before making their moves. They needed to find the hostages and get out of there. Carefully, Steve moved into the door frame of a room.

The lights flickered, and there were shuffling noises deeper inside. Steve narrowed his eyes as he tried to focus on the shadows, Natasha behind him felt the wall for any sign of a light switch.

“Bingo,” her sweet voice said, pressing it on and the lights coming to light. As their vision adjusted, Steve lowered his shield a bit. His gaze was on three individuals. Each cowering around one another, they had their arms wrapped around their legs and into their chests. He looked back at Natasha, and nodded for her to proceed. She seemed to be good in these cases. Nat put her gun back into her holster and moved around Steve and edged to them slowly.

“Target acquired, you can join us,” Steve radioed to everyone else.

“I’m thinking we should do Chinese after this, anyone else?” Tony asked in everyone’s ear. Steve shook his head, replacing his shield onto his back.

“We can talk about it later, Stark.”

Natasha was busy trying to get close to the three people on the floor, who had all but pressed themselves into the wall they were against. She could only focus her attention on one at a time, but Steve kept an eye on them as well from a distance.

Tony and Sam joined them shortly after. Tony’s suit opened automatically as he rubbed his wrists cooly.

“SHIELD eta is three minutes, hope you’re making progress over there Romanoff,” Tony expressed, earning a glare from the red head.

“Shut up, Tony.” she replied.

She had wrapped a blanket around one, who had finally averted their eyes from the ground and met hers. She promised each one a life of peace now. They were there to help. The last one she edged towards, was pressed against the wall, knees scooped to their body. Hair laid all around their face, covering their face from her view. What Natasha didn’t know was they could see  _ everything _ .

Natasha tried to peer into the curtain of hair, hearing faint words leaving their mouth. But with Tony’s incessant talking, she couldn’t make it out.

“Guys-” he called over her shoulder, not earning a response. She glared and spun around on the floor.

“Guys!” she exclaimed, making the three men jump. They looked her way and saw her scowl, and mumbled apologies. She turned her attention back to the third hostage.

She could see the outline of a face now, they had lifted their head slightly. Eyes peered ahead past her, focused on something or an object behind her back. She could make out lips moving, and she tried intently to listen.

_ Bubba. Bubba. Bubba. _

Was Natasha hearing that right?

“Bubba,” she repeated, and the voice she once heard fell silent. But someone behind her stirred.

“What did you say?”

Tony had stepped forward, earning a look from Steve and Nat turned around to look over her shoulder.

“They’re saying bubba, it’s a term mainly in the south which means-”

“ _ Brother _ ,” Natasha and Tony said at the same time. Steve had never seen Tony so pale in the face. Narasha’s eyebrows were furrowed in a brow before her head snapped back to the source of the voice. Her bottom lip trembled a bit as she looked back to Tony. He had taken a number of steps towards the cowering person, and Natasha backed away.

“Oh my God,” Steve mumbled to himself, watching it all unfold.

Tony kneeled before them, careful of his next movements. His forehead felt hot and his hands were trembling. But he couldn’t deny the tiny word that filled air between them.

_ Bubba. _

Tony was careful with his trembling hand he reached forward, his hand gently moving the person's hair. He was holding his breath as he did, pushing the hair back as he tried to get a look at their face. Their face would tell him everything he needed to know. His hand was nearly cupping their cheek now, and the persons let him lift their face up.

Tony gasped. He stared at a face he hadn’t seen in years. He was starting to worry that he would have forgotten what they had looked like. Their eyes had locked with his, the same beautiful color he could remember from his teenage years, but filled with fear and tears. He quickly placed his other hand on their cheek, rubbing his thumbs along their skin.

“(Y/N),” he breathed out. A tear fell down your face, and he pulled you into his arms. He crumpled to the ground and let you sit in his lap, cradling your head on his shoulder. Behind him the rest of the team looked on, Natasha had her hand over her mouth and Sam looked on in bewilderment. Steve on the other hand was quick to take one of the blankets they were using to wrap the hostages and made his way over to Tony. He also was watching your movements. Most of your face was hidden by Tony’s shoulder, but he could see your eyes staring straight ahead and brimmed with tears. As he approached your eyes shot to him, and Steve nearly faltered. Your (e/c) struck him heavily, filled with something other than sadness and the only word he could describe it was fear.

You detached yourself from Tony as Steve came near, hunkering back to press against the wall. One knee was pressed to your chest while the other kneeled to the ground, watching Steve’s movements. Tony quickly grabbed the blanket from Steve’s hands, and the sound of SHIELD arriving behind them filled the empty halls.

“It’s going to be okay,” Tony whispered, and placed the blanket around your shoulders.

-

Tensions had never been that high. Not since SHIELD fell.

Because of the victims they found, they had to be brought to a safe SHIELD facility to begin reconditioning. That’s what they called the process of beginning to heal these people from the torment they had to endure. When they would get onto the large quijet (a bus they said), the victims were carefully given a sedative, and would sleep for the next day. That gave the agents time to put them into their own rooms and check every vital sign that they could run. Assess their health and try to find out who they are.

When they would wake up someone (a psychologist or similar) would go in and start talking to them, and analyze their reactions. From there, they hoped to learn anything about what had happened to them, and try and rehabilitate them.

But in this case, Tony wanted to be apart of every step. The doctors on the other hand thought it would be best to have someone else go in when you first woke up. Tony would then call them an idiot and Steve or Natasha (most of the time both) would have to step in and calm him down.

“Tony you have to listen to them,” Nat would say.

“How is someone else going to evaluate  _ my  _ sister? I know her better than anyone else,” he replied.

“But Tony.. She’s gone through an extremely traumatic event, she isn’t going to be the exact same.” Steve would remind him.

Tony would then get frustrated and storm away. Several hours into the ordeal and Pepper was arriving on the scene. Tony and her were alone for a few hours, well into the night and weren’t seen again until the morning. The next time Steve saw him was before you were expected to awaken, and Tony looked tired. But in all honesty so was Steve. Neither had slept all night.

“I’ll only agree to this on one condition,” Tony said. The doctor looked annoyed but allowed him to continue, “I want Steve to be the one to talk to her.”

Steve stood a little straighter at that. He wasn’t 100% surprised but he was still taken aback. He swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded.

“Of course Tony,” he replied and Tony smiled, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Thanks, Rogers.”

Inside the room you slowly awoke, eyes fluttering open as you fought your way out of the sleepiness. The room was bright, making you quint for a moment as you regain your composure. You sat up fully, almost robotically as someone on the other side of the mirror would note, and the blanket that was covering you fell. You looked down at the clothing you were in, a long sleeved shirt and some soft pants, and you threw the blanket off the rest of your body. You didn’t like unfamiliar places. You carefully swung your legs over the edge of the bed and pushed yourself to stand.

The last 48 hours were still a bit hazy. You had returned from an intel mission, being ushered inside to the dark and dank building and into interrogation. They believed that you had blown your cover and contacted someone from your past, they knew who you were, and you knew as well. But you wouldn’t dare try that. You weren’t stupid. You were always watched when they sent you out. No matter what you collected from them, or who you killed for them - there was never to be trust.

But who would blame them. If you were alone, you would have tried to flee back to America in all honesty. They had tortured you for hours before throwing in with the others. Each cowering against that wall as you were all watched. And that’s when the attack happened. But you truly never expected to see Tony.

You turned around the room, wondering where he was. Your thoughts were cut short when the door opened suddenly, startling you. You were quick to hunker back onto the bed, in that crouched position and protecting your back by pushing against the pillow on the bed. Your eyes locked with the man who walked in.

Tall, broad, and handsome. But a stranger in ways. You didn’t know him personally, but could remember the stories your father would tell Tony and you when you were younger. He walked in and it felt like he could command a room, and he did. His eyes didn’t break your gaze either as he made his way to a chair on the other side of the room. He sat down, hunching forward to rest his elbows on his legs.

“How are you feeling,” he asked first. You had never been asked that. Your eyes scanned him up and down, he noticed easily, not that you tried to hide that. You were assessing him. He knew that. You chose not to answer. He didn’t let that affect him though.

“My name is-”

“Steve Rogers,” you finished. He nodded, hearing your voice fully for the first time. It was distinct, strong in a way he didn’t know how yet, but laced with something sweet. He nodded at you though.

“Do you know who you are?” he asked.

Your eye twitched a bit, a reaction you couldn’t control. You broke your eye contact with him to glance at the two-way mirror and then to your hands. One laid on your leg that was close to your chest, and the other on your thigh. You didn’t answer but nodded in response.

“What’s your name,” Steve pushed. You shook your head ironically.

“(Y/N) Stark,” you said, and looked back up to meet his eyes, “I could never forget.”

Steve nodded, sitting back in the chair and motioned a hand to you, “Do you want to tell me what happened?”

“Not particularly, but I don’t have much of a choice do I?” You asked. Steve didn’t reply to this, instead he threw a glance at the two way mirror as if searching his reflection for an answer. You moved to criss cross your legs to sit more comfortably, and grabbed the pillow to place in your lap. Steve’s eyes met yours again but this time they looked different. 

They looked vulnerable. You inhaled and sighed deeply and cast your eyes down to the ground, and Steve leaned forward and rested his arms on his legs. He wanted to show he was listening and that you could trust him, but a part of him knew that you may not feel that right now, but he wanted someone else to know that. Someone on the other side of the glass. 

The two people in this quiet room had the same objective. They wanted to show Tony that they could be strong for him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes yes I know “Caitlyn why are you starting ANOTHER Steve fic” BC IM STEVE TRASH. CHRIS EVANS GETS ME WEAK IN THE KNEES. AND THE AMOUNT OF EMOTIONAL TURMOIL I HAVE OVER THIS FIC IS INSANE. Thank you goodnight.


	2. She Loves the Wind in Her Hair

“This isn't really a negotiation,” Steve said first. Both were still in their positions, him in this chair and you on the other side of the room on the bed. You stared at him plainly, but shrugged your shoulders.

“I’m not talking about it unless he’s in here,” you replied, pressing the pillow tighter into your chest. 

Steve understood, but the SHIELD agents on the other side of the two way mirror wouldn’t. They had said no already, but you were stubborn. Hard headed. Just like Tony. Just like Howard too. It made him feel giddy on the inside while keeping that straight face on the outside. It also made him consider how well minded you were considering all the years you were with Hydra.

“So we have two options, either he’s in here and I tell you everything you want to know, or we can sit here and play this staring game,” you paused tilting your head, “which is it going to be Captain?”

Oh you were  _ good _ . Your face showed no sign of emotion, and he knew you weren’t bluffing, not in the slightest. His face matched yours, but he was the first to break the eye contact and looked to the two way mirror. He didn’t mind Tony being in here, so if they would just get their heads out of their asses, this could move on a lot smoother. He knew Tony wanted to hear your story, and he did too in all honesty. He wanted to know what you remembered from that night.

There was a click at the door, and both you and Steve shot up. You stayed in your place and you both watched as the door opened and Tony came in. You swallowed the lump in your throat, but a small smile played on our lips. You wanted to run to him and hug him but your legs kept you there.

You were scared.

Tony’s gaze was on you as he took a step inside the room. His orders were to keep his distance, they didn’t know if you were dangerous, if this was all a play to get close to him and kill him. But he knew you could never, but on the other hand he didn’t need them to pull him out of this room. He  _ needed  _ to be here. Stee motioned for him to take the chair he had once occupied and Tony nodded, slowly taking a seat. You mimicked his motions and sat back onto the bed, hugging the pillow once more.

Steve could see the look in your eyes change when Tony had entered, they softened, and he couldn’t tell if the way your eyes were wet meant you were going to cry. No, he didn’t think you would, you wanted to be strong for him. For Tony. Steve took his place against the wall, letting the two siblings focus on one another.

“Can you tell us what happened?” Steve asked. Your eyes went to him, reading his face. His face was soft and made you feel safe. You could share the story with him, and whoever else was behind that mirror. You looked back to Tony.

“My memory of that night is..not the best,” you started in a whisper, “I remember daddy driving fast down this road, mommy was telling him to slow down. She never liked it when he drove fast with me in the car,” you remembered. Tony smiled to himself at the memory. He had forgotten how their mother would playfully slap Howard on the shoulder and tell him to drive like it was Sunday. Howard would toss a smile over his shoulder to his daughter in the back seat and wink saying something along the lines of “she loves the wind in her hair” or anything to get a giggle from you.

“Everything happened so fast, one minute we were on the road, the next all I saw was flames. It hurt,” you paused, rubbing at your wrists, “the glass had cut me, the seatbelt felt like it was..choking me. I remember unbuckling myself and trying to reach the front seat but I can’t remember that anymore. It just ends.”

Steve nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat. His eyes watched you talk, and occasionally he would look to Tony to gauge his reactions. But Tony was in a state he had never really seen. He was just listening.

“The next thing I remember was waking up in a room like this, but smaller,” you glanced around, “there was a woman there. She told me I was in an accident, and they were going to help me feel better. I asked them where my mom and dad were, and they told me that they would be there soon. And then I asked if my brother was coming too,” you paused and averted your eyes to the ground, “they told me he would be there soon too, he couldn’t wait to see me.”

You smiled sadly to yourself, “They did help me feel better. But each day passed, and no one came. I kept asking how much longer it would be before I could go home and she would smile and tell me soon. Just the word soon. But that changed quickly. I don’t know what they did to me but I can’t.. I can’t remember those next few years. They’re just gone.

I was in Paris when someone approached me on a covert mission, they told me I was beautiful and that I looked like this man. She handed me a magazine and on the cover was you,” you nodded at Tony, “They said it was the craziest coincidence and I thanked them. They let me keep the magazine. My first offense with them was when I went dark and sat in a cafe to use a laptop and researched everything there was about Tony Stark. And it hit me like a train. All those memories came back, and they did not like that. 

I was interrogated for days, I knew because they had taught me how to measure time by where the sun and moon positioned itself. They thought I couldn’t see it but the tiny crack in the window was just enough. They kept asking me what I knew and I said everything. They didn’t like that.”

You sighed, “On the last day they brought a laptop in, and when they opened it there was a feed. I couldn’t see straight, but it was you. You were on the screen, giving some kind of press release junk, and they could see me relax. They told me that one of their people was there now. You’re easily accessible and they could kill you in a second's notice if I  _ ever _ tried to leave or contact you.”

Tony was quiet as he watched tears swell in your eyes, “I don’t.. I don’t want you to think I didn’t try, God, Tony I wanted to. But they would kill you. They often reminded me of that, that you would be gone just like mom and dad,” you felt the tear fall, “when I remembered it all that’s all I could think of. Everyday I thought about you. I thought about how you’d hold my hand when we’d go on those walks to the park, until people started to notice and you’d pick me up and run as fast as your legs could take you. We’d hide behind that huge old tree stump in the Peterson’s are until the coast was clear, and then when we would make it to the park you’d push me round and round on the merry go round until I got sick.

I thought about how you’d try and come into my room quietly when I was sleeping when you’d get home late from your fancy school, and lay in bed with me. You always thought you were so sneaky but the truth was I was waiting up for you those nights mom would let it slip you were coming home. I left the door wide open for you those nights. You’d kiss my head and whisper goodnight and fall asleep and I would too.”

Tony’s eyes were tearing up at that point, Steve’s too in fact. You smiled sadly to yourself and locked eyes with Tony, “I just want you to know that everyday I thought about how much I loved and missed you, mom, and dad.”

Tony shook his head, and he stood making his way over to you. Tears had fallen down your cheeks and he kneeled in front of you and wiped them away with his thumbs, “You don’t have to tell me, I know. I know how much they loved you, and how much I love you.” You nodded as he spoke and he took you into his arms, and this time you wrapped your arms around him too.

Steve Rogers watched the scene unfolding around him, and a pang of guilt filled his stomach.

—————

There were images coming in from all over the world. Tony had taken it upon himself to run your face through facial recognition technology to learn when and where you were all these years. None of them were state side, but you had popped up in Berlin, Paris (like you had mentioned), various parts of Russia, and the list continued. Each picture he could see your face changing, getting older and older, and even hidden under different hairstyles and clothing from rags to the most beautiful of fabric, your eyes still stayed the same. Even if some images were fuzzy.

He rubbed his face and glanced at his watch. It was 2 am. He had stayed with you for most of the day and into the late hours of the night until you had grown tired. You both laid in that bed, his arm around you and your head rested on his side, and he listened to you fall asleep. You looked so calm, and he kissed your head and carefully peeled himself from your sleeping body. He didn’t want to leave you, but he had to get to work on being able to bring you home with him.

Home. Where would that be exactly? The tower didn’t feel like a good fit, but he also no longer had his home in Malibu. He was working on something in northern New York, maybe he could have you help him with that. You had always been creative when they were younger, he thought he picked up a thing or two from you. With Pepper running Stark Industries, he could use a woman’s touch.

Either way, he had fought with the agents about letting him take you with him as soon as possible. They didn’t agree with him on the idea that he should take an obviously trained secret agent back under his care, without the finishing reconditioning being complete. He obviously didn’t agree and said that you’d be leaving with him whether they liked it or not. They said that if he tried that then not only would you be considered a threat, but he would too. He believes they knew that would make him think twice about his next actions and unfortunately they were right.

He couldn’t put you in harm's way. Never again.

Tony stood from the desk he was occupying and stretched his back. He was sure Pepper was asleep, but maybe she’d be awake for him to talk things through with her. She had become his voice of reasoning, and if she wasn’t there then that fell on Rogers. Or Romanoff. He had already asked so much from Steve though, and of course he couldn’t wake him up this late. Old men needed their sleep.

Tony made his way back to the room he was given, it was small but it worked for the time being. He slid a card against the panel on the side and the door opened automatically, and he smiled at the sight of Pepper sitting upright and working on something in her lap.

“You’re up late,” he commented, walking in and unbuttoning his shirt. Pepper smiled at him, setting her things to the side as he crawled into bed. Tony rested his head in her lap, and she began to stroke his hair.

“I could say the same for you,” she threw back and him and he grabbed her other hand to kiss it, “what’s going on in that mind of yours, Tony?”

On the other side of things, you had woken up in a sweat. The room lights turned on low when you had shot awake. You desperately threw the blankets off of you and rested your arms on your legs to breathe deeply. The nightmare wasn’t new to you, but with the past days events fresh in your mind, something just bothered you more about it.

The door beeped, which you related to someone being there. You didn’t know if they lingered to give you a moment to compose yourself, but when it opened the person in the doorway was..surprising. Steve Rogers took one step in before pausing, as if looking for permission.

“Captain Rogers,” you managed and he took that as an invitation to come in, “you have impeccable timing.”

“I was-“ he cleared his throat, realizing how this was going to sound, “I was in the other room, going over today when I heard you wake up. I wanted to check on you.”

You nodded, more to yourself than him. You ran a hand through your dirty hair and sighed.

“I had a nightmare.” You said simply. Steve nodded, putting his hands into the pockets of his pants.

“When I came out of the ice, it took me awhile to readjust to life, I still am in a way,” he started, “I think the hardest thing was sleeping in a soft bed after that many years. It’s—“

“— not normal,” you said in unison. He nodded and you offered a sad smile.

“Do you still have them?” You asked, and Steve shook his head without hesitation.

“Sometimes, not as much anymore.”

You looked from him then to the bed you were sitting on, and you motioned to him, “Would you like to sit?”

That took him by surprise. You looked at him with kind and curious eyes, and he felt himself drawn to that. But a part in his mind told him to tread cautiously, but he nodded and took the steps closer to you. He sat on the edge of the bed, leaving a comfortable amount of space between you two.

“I spent a lot of my time thinking about how different my life would’ve been if I wasn’t in that car that night,” you started off, your fingers tracing lines on the fabric covering your legs. Steve found himself watching, and listening to you speak.

“Tony he’s gone on to do great things, and even become a superhero to others other than me,” you chuckled to yourself, but it stopped and so did your fingers, Steve’s eyes went back to your face, “what’s going to happen to me?”

You asked him honestly, your eyes locking with his. Steve didn’t know how to answer in all honesty. The thing was no one knew  _ what  _ exactly you had done all these years. You mentioned missions, and he had also seen the way you reacted to certain things. Were you like Bucky? Or something else? His silence to your question made you continue.

“Captain Rogers—“

“Steve. You can call me Steve.”

You nodded, “ _ Steve _ ,” you tested and he offered a nod, “the things that I’ve done won’t be taken well by people. I’ve extorted world leaders, tortured people for information, and.. have had to go to extreme lengths to cover my tracks. Murder wasn’t off the table,” you said the last part in almost a whisper, “I didn’t want to do those things but I wanted to stay alive. But now my greatest fear is being locked in here. Never being free.”

Steve carefully placed a hand over yours, and you looked at him with curiosity. He was comforting you.

“I promise that Tony would not let that happen to you,” he paused, unsure if what he was about to say was too much, “and I promise that I won’t let that happen to you.”

You smiled, and it made him smile in return, “You are a kind man, Steve Rogers.”

“Everyone deserves to live their life freely. I had a friend back in my time,” he paused and released your hand, but you turned to him to listen with all your attention, “I thought he died back then. When Hydra was found out, I learned that he survived, and they had taken him too.”

“He’s alive?”

Steve nodded, “He’s gone off the radar. I’ve been trying to find him but he’s good. Too good. Every lead we’ve gotten runs cold eventually.”

“Does he have a name?” You asked and Steve nodded.

“His name is James, or I called him Bucky. His covert name was the Winter Soldier.”

He watched your face to see if you had any reaction, but you just furrowed your brow in confusion, “I’ve never heard of him.”

He felt relief leaving his body, but he nodded instead, “All I want is to find him and help him.”

You tilted your head at him, “You want to help others, but what about you? You said you’re still readjusting to things.”

Steve nodded, and took a deep breath and offered a smil, “I learn as I go.”

You nodded, “Will you help me? Can we learn together?”

Two people, two very different situations. But he believed that you, just like his friend Bucky, deserved your freedom. Your life back. He made a promise to himself right there in that instance that he was going to do everything in his power to get you out of there and help you see your life freely again.

He would damn well make sure it happens.

Steve nodded, and you smiled at him like there was no tomorrow. He was going to make sure you got out of here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this part literally made my chest hurt. i love tony and exploring how a relationship with a younger sister is it breaks my hear but also wonbgonro steve being the man he is and wanting to help but knowing what he knows i-- my chest


	3. I'll Remind You of That Everyday

Tony Stark has been looking forward to this day for the last 6 weeks. A whole 45 days have passed once you were discovered, since you started your reconditioning, and today he was finally looking at the chance to get you out of this place. He had the whole next week planned: you’d come back with him to New York and he would get you all settled into your own place in the Avengers Tower, and let you readjust to life in the city. Then, he would put out the idea of you going with him to help finalize the details of the facility he was working on just north from there, and from there he would just get to spend some quality time with his sister away from the watchful eye of SHIELD.

**_It was overbearing for him to have to sit there with you and be watched but you had handled those situations calmly. You were a lot more relaxed then he was, even going as far as to comment on it to him. Sure, you were joking around, which he found amusing, but they didn’t find it that much so. They told him that “those kinds of comments are cynical and harmful to the healing process.”_ **

**_But they wouldn’t ever understand. It was a Stark thing. The demeaning sense of humor was like a coping mechanism for them. But you were just funny all around._ **

**_When they had given you what looked to be inedible food, you pushed it around with your fork and mumbled, “Being held captive by Hydra for that many years they at least never handed me a pile of trash to eat.” Tony had to cough into his napkin from laughter, and snuck you in a fattening hamburger the same night, and you both discussed the times your father bribed you both (especially you) with those kiddie meals from your favorite diner in hopes of not spilling to your mother of all his late work nights if she was traveling._ **

**_Another time was when it was Tony, you, and Steve, whom he had asked for his help on assessing your physical “attributes”. He watched as you were able to hold your own against him, until the last moment and Steve had you pinned against the ground, “My dad never told me you were so aggressive with women, Steve, but I can see the appeal,” to which Steve had loosened his grip on you and you’d flip him in a matter of second, “he did tell me that you were often intimidated by women. Guess that was right.” Tony had a shit eating grin that day, while Steve disappeared for the next few hours. You, on the other hand, didn’t even seem to be phased by his disappearance. But what Tony didn’t know about were the nights he wasn’t with you, Steve was._ **

**_That night in particular he had joined you with his laptop, as per usual, and the latest addition to his bucket list. You were slowly working your way through the Star Wars saga, even though you remember the original movies when you were younger, the details of them were lost to you. So you had eagerly sat up when the door opened, making room for Steve to sit with you on your bed. He didn’t mention the occurrence earlier in the day, and you didn’t either. Really, what could he say? You bested him with your words. He wasn’t upset about it._ **

**_That night, while watching The Empire Strikes Back, he got to see you in a new light. He watched you from the corner of his eye be completely immersed in this situation. Relaxed._ **

**_You._ **

**_It was a month since they had found you. And in that month Steve had learned a number of things. He learned that you were funny, you definitely shared that trait with Tony (although he would never admit that to him). He learned that when you were quiet you were actually analyzing the people around you, learning. You were smart and cunning, another thing you shared with Tony. He also learned that you don’t show your fear to others, not unless you trust them. At times, he felt you acted differently around Tony, and then around himself compared to others. Expected, yes, but he was . . . flattered in a way that you trusted him like that. But, on the other hand, you didn’t trust him as much as you trusted Tony. However, the nights where you two would spend alone time, it felt refreshing for him._ **

**_That night in particular, when the credits began to roll, he had never seen you react in the way you did. You had shot up from the bed, and had your hands rested on the side of your cheeks, mumbling to yourself, “Как они придумали это? Его отец? Джедай? (How did they come up with this? His father? A Jedi?)”_ **

**_Steve chuckled to himself, and you shot him a daring glare, “Don’t laugh at me.”_ **

**_“You didn’t see it coming?” He asked, to which you shook your head, and he laughed a bit to himself, closing his laptop. Something crossed your face, causing your brow to narrow and frown at him._ **

**_“So soon?”_ **

**_Was that sadness he heard wrapped in your voice? He had tried to ignore it but it crossed his mind a number of times after that._ **

But today, Steve was looking forward to getting off this base once and for all. He was sitting in the meeting room, a number of SHIELD doctors entering, before Tony burst into the room, clapping his hands.

“Alright ladies and gentleman, let’s get this show on the road,” he greeted, earning not much of a response from the other agents, so he beelined for Steve. Tony sat next to him, resting an arm on the table and facing his companion.

“I’ve been looking forward to this day for the last 6 weeks,” Tony commented, and Steve crossed his arms over his chest, offering a nod.

“I’m sure you have, Tony.”

“Are you coming back to New York?” Tony asked, pulling a phone out from his jacket pocket. Steve shrugged his shoulders.

“Not sure, it’s time I got back to searching for Bucky,” he replied, earning a nod from Tony as he scrolled on his phone, typing every once in a while.

“Well thank you for these last few weeks,” he looked up from his phone, and smiled that toothy grin at him, “I needed someone here with me to help with her.”

“Of course, Tony,” he nodded, “how do you plan on introducing Pepper and her?”

“Carefully,” he sighed, sitting back in his chair, “Pep is in California right now, so it’ll give her a few days to settle in-”

As he was finishing his thought, the door opened up. Both men stood, as one shorter female agent entered, and followed shortly behind her was the new director (resurrected, or never really dead, that was classified). Phil Coulson looked just about the same, maybe a year or two older than the last time they saw him. 

“Good morning everyone,” he greeted offering a kind smile as he pulled out the chair at the head of the table, “let’s get on with it shall we? Let’s start with the final evaluation.”

One of the doctors nodded and Coulson, Tony, and Steve all sat in their respective seats. The doctor opened up their file and cleared her throat. 

“After careful evaluation, we’ve determined that Ms. Stark isn’t completely ready to be reintroduced to society.” Tony’s jaw dropped, and before he could interject she continued, “Over the last six weeks we have learned some things, but there is still much we aren’t aware of. She declines to share explicit details of her experience. When pressed further she goes silent and won’t speak further unless Mr. Stark or Captain Rogers are present, and even at that point in time, it’s casual. Not informative. 

As far as physical evaluations, she appears to be completely healthy. Capable. The training she has and the little information we have determines she was trained similarly to the likes of Natasha Romanoff and—“ she paused to glance at Steve and then back to Coulson, ignoring Tony’s ever growing anger, “—and James Barnes. She’s proven to be able to hold her own against Captain Rogers. She could be dangerous if pushed too far.”

Tony saw his chance to interject, “This is such horseshit.” He motioned over to the doctors sitting across from him before his hand landed on the table. “We have done everything you’ve asked and you only spring up your concern  _ now _ ?”

“We have expressed our concern, but you have elected to ignore those--”

“ _ Elected to ignore _ ,” he mimicked and looked to Coulson. “The only thing they’ve complained about is how her humor is detrimental to the healing process, like they don’t know how I’ve coped in the past-”

“Tony,” Steve tried to cut in, but Tony kept going. This time, he stood, pointing at all of them.

“She was just a little girl, and you see her ways of coping as harmful when in reality, anyone can see that she is trying to hold onto that shred of childhood memory that she has left.” Steve knew better than to interrupt him, but one of the agents behind him didn’t. After trying to place a hand on Tony’s shoulder, Tony ripped his arm from his grip.

“She doesn’t  _ belong  _ here. Locked up and being ‘evaluated’. She needs to go somewhere where she can feel safe, and-and comfortable, you assholes are trying to take that--”

“That’s enough, Mr. Stark,” Coulson finally said out loud. Tony's attention went to him, as his chest heaved. “Please. Sit down.”

Tony looked back around the table before his eyes landed on Steve, who offered him a friendly nod to the chair he had shot out of. Tony grumbled something beneath his breath, and sat back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. Coulson leaned forward, his fingers lacing together on the table.

“I see the concern that they have,” he started and shot a warning look at Tony before he could interject. “I’ve gone over it myself. She is very skilled, and in some ways we didn’t get a chance to learn. But, Tony, you’re absolutely right. She won’t get any better if she stays here.”

“Sir--” one of the doctors tried to interrupt, but Coulson ignored them.

“I’m allowing her departure, with the agreement that you,” he said, pointing at Tony, “will be keeping a watchful eye on her while she is in your care. You can go wherever you want, do whatever you want, but she is  _ your  _ responsibility.”

“Thank you, Coulson-” Tony said before being cut off.

“I’m not finished,” Coulson said, and Tony nodded eagerly. His finger went to Steve’s direction, “I’m also allowing her care to fall upon you, Captain.”

“Sir?” Steve questioned.

“In the instance that Tony cannot be with her, I’m allowing you to be a responsible party. I need it to be understood where you go, she goes too.”

Steve was quiet, processing the plate practically pushed in front of him. Tony nearly whipped around in his chair to look at him, his eyes looking for some kind of answer on Steve’s face. Steve looked up from his hands, and at his friend. His mind trailed off to you, and that sad look you had given him the last night you spent time together. He offered a nod to Tony, who grinned and looked back to Coulson.

“Of course. We understand.”

* * *

You had seen the pictures, you had pictured it in your mind but seeing it in front of you was like an out of body experience.

When Tony came to you in that room, leaving the door open for you, you felt a wave of happiness wash over your body. He smiled at you and wrapped an arm around your shoulders and placed a kiss to the side of your head. And you left. And you never looked back.

But in this moment, as Tony allowed you to unbuckle yourself and come to the front of the Quinjet (they called it that) to look out the front window, you were surprised. You held onto the back of his chair as the Avengers Tower stood high above the other building on the skyline. The sheer size made you mumble a wow beneath your breath, but he heard you and tossed a glance up at you. The kiddish amazement in your eyes made his heart soften. Tony carefully slowed the speed of the Quinjet before edging closer to the large platform on the building, and you steadied yourself as he brought the ship to a stop. On the platform, Steve Rogers awaited.

Tony took the time to flip switches off, and the back ramp opened, and you were eager to step out of the metal ship. Steve stood with his hands in his pockets, squinting against the blaring sunlight, but still offered you a smile.

“I hope Tony’s flying wasn’t too much to handle,” he called through the air. You shrugged your shoulders, and smiled back at him.

“I’ve experienced worse,” you responded back. You walked around the aircraft and looked out to the skyline before you. The edge of the platform had no end, and if someone wasn’t careful enough or paying attention, they were sure to fall right off. But you took steps closer and closer to the edge, mesmerized by the colors reflecting off the buildings of New York. It was a beautiful view. Your thoughts were cut short when a hand grabbed your arm, not too tightly, and you looked back at your capturer.

Tony looked at you with a hint of worry in his eyes, and you sighed, “Tony I’m just looking at the view.”

“I know,” he released your arm, and your eyes glanced between him and Steve who had followed around, “I know I just--”

“You’re just worried about me, yes, I understand.”

He didn’t reply but motioned back towards the looming modern building, and you felt as if you had to force yourself to walk past him and towards the glass doors that opened as you stepped closer. Steve joined beside Tony, both men walking behind you as you entered the building, the cool air conditioning hit your arms and you wrapped your arms in one another, looking around the room.

Tony had a very easy sense of design. Simple, modern, and mostly clean. It was appealing, but there wasn’t much sense of home here. You let him give you a tour around the place, before he showed you to your room. ‘Room’ was an understatement though, it was like having your own little apartment in this extravagant building. You sat on the bed when the two men were about to leave the room, before Tony spun around.

“Oh I almost forgot,” he spun around and clapped his hands, “I almost forgot to tell you about JARVIS.”

“JARVIS..?” you drawled out, and a voice rang into the room.

“Yes, ma’am that’s correct. I run most of the systems in this building,” the male voice said and you shot up from the bed, looking around.

“JARVIS is an intelligence system I created, over the years he’s been developed to run operations at Stark Industries, and now here,” he said. Tony moved his arms around to motion the building. “If you need anything, just ask him.”

You nodded slowly as he spoke, and settled back onto the bed. “Okay..”

Tony offered a small smile. “I’ll let you rest a bit, give you some privacy. I’m sure you miss that.”

“I did, yeah,” you replied. “Thank you, Tony.”

“Anything for you.”

But you never left your room. You never came back to the common area, or kitchen for dinner. The sun set, the moon rose, and Tony hadn’t seen you since he left you in your room. Of course, the only thing he asked of JARVIS was if you were okay.

_ “She’s fine, sir, just resting.” _

He went to his room that night and couldn’t fall asleep for the life of him. The only sense of comfort he got was when Pepper answered his call, and her face filled his room.

“How’s it going?” she asked and he sighed, running a hand over his face.

“I don’t know. We got here and she’s been in her room ever since.”

Pepper’s eyes crinkled a bit at the side, and she nodded her head. “She just needs time, Tony, that’s all it is. She’s alone for the first time in years, that solitude sometimes it’s comforting.”

She wasn’t wrong.

You fell asleep shortly after Tony left you. You rested against a pile of pillows and pulled the blanket up to your shoulders, and slowly fell asleep while staring at a wall. When you woke up, darkness surrounded you, and you rolled onto your back. The lamp beside you came on and you rubbed one of your eyes. You blinked a couple times and furrowed your brows.

“What time is it?” you tested.

“It’s 11:06 PM,” JARVIS’ voice said. You sat up in your bed, and moved your legs off the side of the bed.

“Could you.. Could you show me the way to the kitchen?”

“Of course,” he said and you stood from the bed and moved to the door of your room. You pulled the door open and a small blue light on the wall was in front of you, and moved to your right. You followed, your bare feet quiet against the floor as you stepped along. You crossed your arms over your chest as you followed the blue light and it stopped at the elevator. You pressed the button and the doors opened up for you, and you entered. It moved on its own and you cleared your throat when it opened back up for you to exit.

The common area was larger than your room, but the kitchen was evident. You mumbled a thanks and quickly walked over to the fridge you could see and pulled the door open, grabbing a bottle of water. You practically tore the lid open and chugged half the bottle, walking back to the open living area. When you closed the bottle again, letting out a satisfied “ah” sound your eyes landed on the large TV screen on the wall.

You took a couple steps forward and the light in the room came on automatically. You sat down on the soft couch, and rested your arms on your legs.

“JARVIS?” you called out quietly.

“I’m here,” his voice said.

“Do you have any . . . personal videos of my family?”

He was quiet for a few seconds, and a part of you hoped he would say no, but that wasn’t the case.

“Yes, there is a number of footage I’ve found.” He paused as you sighed. “Would you like me to play it?”

“Yes,” you answered. The TV turned on and you set the bottle of water down on the coffee table and sat back on the couch, bringing your knees up to your chest.

Shaky, grainy footage started to play. The clicking of a camera sound was evident, and at first all you could see were feet. You furrowed your brows until the camera came up more, and there was Tony. His arm stretched out before him and he smiled at the camera.

“Dad didn’t see the point in filming,” his young voice echoed in the room, and he swung the camera around until your parents were visible, “but I think it’s important to film this.”

“Tony,” Howard warned, looking exceptionally disheveled as he was bouncing around a baby. You.

“Only a few weeks old and already taking your toll on dad, I gotta give her props,” Tony said again. A kissing sound came from close to the mic, and then Maria appeared.

“Tony, please, why don't you come and try feeding her?” her voice said, sweetness laced in it. The camera fumbled a bit, and the image cut out. You smiled, but the next one started almost immediately.

Happy birthdays filled the room you were in, and there in a high chair was you, already grabbing at the cake that was placed in front of you. Tony was beside you this time, not behind the camera. He was laughing as you smeared the cake around, flinging a small piece onto his cheek. The camera moved to show Maria, hurrying over to clean the mess, and a chuckle coming behind the camera.

“We’ve got a fiesty one on our hands, Maria,” his voice said playfully. She shot him a glare, and the feed cut out again.

This time, the next image was clearer and more colorful. Your face filled the screen, water surrounding you and your hair wet and glowing in the sun.

“And here we have the talented, undeniably prettiest girl in the world, little miss (Y/N),” as Tony spoke you swam backwards, giggling, “wanting to show off her handstand skills to mom and dad dearest.”

The camera swung around to show Howard and Maria, standing under a patio, and Tony zoomed in on their faces. You shook your head.

“Stop,” you whispered, and the footage stopped. At some point your eyes had watered, and a tear slid down your cheek. Your eyes were focused on the crystal clear image of your parents, alive, and looking on at their children happily. Another tear fell at the thought and you let it. You let the tears fall even when someone came over next to you and sat beside you.

They didn’t say anything, but just looked at what was on the TV. You rested your chin on your knee, staring ahead.

“Everything I told you I really do remember,” you whispered, “but there’s not a lot I recall, and everyday I feel like I remember them less and less.”

You shook your head and a tear slid down your cheek. “I can’t remember their faces without seeing a photo or--or this . . . Tony, I don’t want to forget.”

You were looking at him now, the tears on your face highlighted by the glow from the TV. Tony brought his hand up to your cheek and wiped away a tear, his hand resting there and you leaned into his palm. “You won’t forget them, you won’t,” he repeated.

His other hand went to your other cheek, cupping your face in his hands. “You won’t ever forget how much they loved you, the joy you brought to their lives--to mine.” He paused and smiled sadly at you. “And I’ll remind you of that everyday if I have to.”

You nodded a bit as he spoke, and he brought you closer to him, placing a kiss to the top of your head. You instinctively wrapped your arms around his chest, and nestled yourself into his side as one of his arms wrapped around your shoulders. You were curled into him, and he rubbed your shoulder slowly.

Neither of you said anything for the rest of the night. Tony held you until he could hear the even breaths leave your body, and he knew you were asleep. But he didn’t move. He stayed there and rubbed your shoulder until he fell asleep too, his head falling backwards against the couch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guyssss so like I said in my kylo fic I did take last week off bc I wanted to just..relax. and then I'm having issues finding a beta reader for that fic and I had to wait a day to post that one and it threw off my whole schedule AND THEN I got a new computer and not even 5 days later started getting monitor burn in it lol love that. but here you go! i think this chapter falls ill to the "having to explain what happens before the next important part" cliche but the ending is important for a certain relationship so... enjoy :)


	4. I've Got Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit this is over 4.8k words don't say i didn't treat y'all. this is *chefs kisses* juicy shit in here. sorry for this being awhile between uploads. honestly it's been rough for me recently. Monday ended up being my last day of work, and idk what's really going on besides the fact ya girl needs to file for unemployment. so writing is my outlet right now. but that's good for you, right? aha. anyways, i hope you guys enjoy!

Tony did everything in his power to help you get comfortable in this new environment. No seriously, he did  _ everything _ . From as far as getting your favorite books delivered to you, to cooking a homemade meal from his mother’s recipes -- Tony did it all. He learned about what you did while under Hydra’s capture, the missions, details, all of it; he learned that if you had to pick, your favorite place you had seen was Paris. You told him about how you walked arm in arm with a man you were sent to get information from, and walking past the Eiffel Tower at night. The man had it lit just for you.

As time passed on, you relaxed more into a routine. Tony noticed the routine formed quickly, but it helped you adjust to this new life. 6 AM without fail you were up and in the gym. Steve would be there, and you would train together. A walk on the treadmill with a sharp incline to get your heart rate up, followed by a pull up challenge Steve would set, then a bit of boxing, and finished with a run to cooldown. Tony wondered if it was more his idea or yours, but Pepper told him not to worry about it. So he tried not to.

One month passed, and you were comfortable around the two enough that conversations flowed pretty easily. You asked Tony when you would get to actually leave the Tower over dinner one night, and Steve glanced up from his food to see Tony smile awkwardly. All he said was soon.

Two months passed, and Tony brought you with him to the new (totally secret) Avengers compound. He brought you everyday for a few hours, which you always looked forward to after your morning training session with Steve, and you helped him with the finishing design concepts. You had a surprising amount of knowledge when it came to incorporating JARVIS into the facilities already set up A.I. Smart, just like dad always said you were; you “just a different way of looking at things.” Tony was more of a visionary, creating ideas and having projects, and you were shaping up to be a visionary, but in the sense of incorporating and advancing the use of things. As Tony and you made your way back to the Quinjet, you asked him again about the possibility of being able to come and go freely. Tony told you, again, soon.

It was three months since you were brought to the Tower. Three months, six days, 5 hours and 58 minutes to be exact. You laid awake in your bed and stared at the ceiling. Any second now JARVIS was scheduled to wake you up, but you sighed and ran your hands over your face.

“Good morning, Miss Stark,” his crystal clear voice said. You rested your arms above your head as your lamp automatically came on. It was normal to you now. Most of it anyway.

“Morning, JARVIS,” you replied, peeling yourself from the bed and running your hands down your blanketed legs, “how’s it looking today?”

“It’s a cool 55 degrees today with a forecasted slight overcast,” he spoke. You threw the blanket off of you and walked towards the window, the blinds moved upwards as you approached and you rubbed your arms, “but your view should be clear as the sun rises.”

The sky was painted a light purple and pink, the sun still not supposed to rise for a few more minutes, but you could see peaks of it in the horizon. You stopped before the wide window and took in the view, a sad smile on your face. You have been cooped up in this tower (not counting your trips to Tony’s new compound, that doesn’t count) for three months, six days, 6 hours and 3 minutes. It was like your skin itched the longer you were in this building, as nice as it is, you just wanted to walk the streets like a normal person.

You took a couple steps back from the window and had to peel your eyes from the view. Your routine was like this, and it got worse everyday. You wake up before your alarm, lay in bed and stare at the ceiling, get up, stare out the window, then change and go meet Steve. Train, come back for a shower, get ready for the day, and then leave with Tony to the compound. You didn’t know if it was getting worse because you couldn’t just leave this tower, or because you knew there wasn’t anymore work to be done at the compound (which meant being stuck here all day again).

A loose shirt, black leggings, socks, tennis shoes. It was almost the same everyday, maybe shorts and a tank top, but still the same. To you it was all the same. You did the best you could with your hair before leaving your room and heading to the rather large gym on another floor, the same as the common area was on. The elevator was waiting for you, thanks to JARVIS, and you stepped in and pressed the button. It was too quiet for your liking, but the trip wasn’t too long. The doors opened and you stepped onto the floor you needed and headed straight to the gym. You walked past the common area, kitchen you often had dinner in, and Tony’s lab. You slowed your pace to see it was empty. You didn’t think too much about it, Tony was probably still asleep.

You entered the gym and were surprised not to see Steve there already. He always was here before you, he often reminded you of that fact. You took a look back behind you through the open door down the hallway you just travelled down, “JARVIS? Where is everyone?”

“Mr. Stark was called to Malibu for a short trip, he’ll be returning this evening. Mr. Rogers also is unavailable. I’m not too sure when he will be returning.”

You frowned, looking back at the gym. It was strange that both Tony and Steve wouldn’t leave any kind of message for you that they would be gone. Maybe it was sudden. You backtracked from the room and headed back down the hallway. No Steve? No training today. No Tony? Well. . . you were a highly trained spy. You could get away with something.

You stopped in your tracks when you heard thunder outside the walls. Strange, JARVIS said slight overcast, nothing about thunder. Not thinking much of it, you continued back to the elevator and only this time it didn’t open automatically. You huffed, looking to the stairs nearby and heading for those. Quickly, you ascended the stairs, hopping along the way. One flight, two flights, a few more until you were back on your floor. You rushed back to your quarters, practically throwing your door open and hurrying to the bathroom. You just had to shower and dry your hair and change. Easy enough, you had plenty of time!

You stripped from your clothes and stepped into the large shower that had enough shower heads pointed at you that you were covered in hot water. It hit your skin and left a small sting against it. You hummed, working shampoo through the hair on your scalp, and washing it out after a few moments. You washed your body with some kind of smooth scented wash, until you were completely lathered up. It left your skin smooth and silky, and you continued your humming as you turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. You grabbed a towel near you and wrapped it around your bare, wet body, and then another worked on drying your hair.

You took wet steps back towards your bedroom and stopped. You were suddenly uneasy as you looked into your room. The window was still open, but you felt something, no  _ someone  _ was waiting for you around the corner. But that.. Was impossible. Right? No one could get up here. Tony made sure of it.

Instinctively, you wrapped the towel you held around your fists, and rolled it until it was slender enough to be tight. You took another careful step from the tile to the wood floor, and peered around the corner.

Tall, broad shoulders, longer blonde hair and blue eyes met yours. He was dressed oddly, a braid in his hair and his glare softened at the sight of you. You saw his eyes wash over your body, quickly, and you hesitated.

“Who are you?” his deep voice asked. You definitely hesitated.

“I-I should be asking you that,” you replied. 

His glare was gone, definitely, since his eyes once again looked you over once more. Slowly they trailed up your bare legs, past your towel and were your breasts nearly pooled over the edge of the towel, and lingered on your neck. He met your gaze, shifting his weight from one foot to another.

“I am Thor, of Asgard,” he glanced past you towards the bathroom, then looked around the room, “are you a companion of Tony’s?”

“Companion,” the word rolled over your tongue before realization hit you, “ew. No. No no no I-”

“Then you are a companion of Steve’s,” he said, cutting you off. You shook your head quickly.

“No, not like that! I-”

“Did you break your way in here?” he asked, taking a step forward. You narrowed your brow at him, but took a step back as well. He didn’t stop his crawl towards you, his eyes pierced into you and you stopped when your back touched the wall. He towered over you, in size and height, and you glanced down at his hand gripped onto what looked to be a big hammer. 

“If you broke into this building, I can easily remove you,” his voice was deep and intimidating, and you swallowed the lump in your throat. Strangely enough, a heat had begun to fill your lower stomach.

“I live here,” you finally managed. He scoffed.

“Impossible, this is only for the Avengers-”

“I’m Tony’s sister,” you stopped him. He blinked at you, looking over your face once more, his brows furrowed in confusion.

“Tony has never spoken of a sister,” he challenged. 

“I. . . Was taken when I was younger, by Hydra,” you saw his grip loosen from the corner of your eyes, “They found me three months ago.”

Thor took a quick few steps back from you. He knew you weren’t lying, he could see it in your face. You breathed, the tension in your body leaving in the sigh and you relaxed the towel in your hands, folding your arms over your chest. You were suddenly very aware of how exposed you were, as was he.

“My apologies,” he cleared his throat, “I thought I saw you coming up the stairs and thought you to be an intruder.”

You shook your head and waved a hand at him, “Uh, yeah, no it’s fine,” you paused, “so you just.. Let me shower?”

“I didn’t want to intrude,” he said, staring at a wall, “I will leave you alone.”

You nodded at him as he walked out of your room. You quickly walked over and shut it softly, and rested your forehead against the door. What the hell just happened? Did you really just freeze up because of the stare of an (albeit) attractive man. You managed to be around Steve everyday, this shouldn’t have gotten to you as much.

Well, on the other hand, Steve didn’t look at you with hunger in his eyes like “Thor” did. No, Steve’s looks were that of friendship, and care. To be honest with yourself, you missed the male attention. The look, that hunger, the feeling of a hand ghosting over your body. You shivered at the thought, and pushed that thought from your mind. You needed to change and get out of here. You couldn’t hide in here forever.

You grabbed a pair of jeans and a long sleeve shirt, and a matching bra and panty to change into. You changed quickly and put the towels back into the bathroom where you could easily wash them, and then put on some fluffy socks and boots before walking out of your door. Opting for the stairs, you walked down each flight and fixed your damp hair behind your ear. Each step rang out, as much as you tried to quiet them, and when you got back to the common area, you met Thor’s gaze. He offered you a smile, looking over a take out menu near the kitchen.

“I was thinking this Thai food as you call it,” he flipped it around, “I’m very hungry.”

“It’s breakfast time,” you replied. A small hm left his lips and you smiled, shaking your head. You walked over to him and opened your hand for the menu, which he handed over, staring at you again with that look in his eyes.

“Look,” you pointed at the front, “they open at noon. It’s only 7 AM, so we need to get your breakfast.”

“Breakfast yes,” he clapped his hands together and backed towards the elevators, “will you join me for this breakfast?”

You folded the menu in your hands and bit your lip as you stared towards him. You  _ knew  _ you should stay here. Wait for Tony or Steve to return, but then you  _ knew _ this may be your only chance to see the city. See life. So, you did the only thing you could. You set the menu down on the counter and hurried over beside Thor, who smiled at you and turned towards the elevator.

“Are you going to wear that?” you asked him, eyeing him up and down. He only smiled at you.

“No, I can change.”

* * *

Steve was a bit eager to return to New York. His quick mission to France, once again, ended in a dead end. This time though, he wasn’t returning home. Both Sam and Natasha were coming back with him to the Tower, while he was happy to be reunited with his friends, he was also nervous as to how someone would react to more people around. He didn’t realize how tense he was until Natasha pointed it out.

“If you keep staring at the wall, a hole will appear in it Steve,” she said in his ear, over the earpieces. Steve’s eyes looked at her in the pilot seat and shook his head.

“Haha, very funny,” he replied. 

“I didn’t hear you deny it,” she said again, her voice sweet. He rolled his eyes.

“I’m. . . Nervous.”

“Don’t be nervous, Steve,” Sam said next. Nat was beginning her descent down to the landing pad on the Tower. Steve carefully stood, adjusting the belt that hugged his hips, swaying slightly with the quinjet.

“You two don’t know what it’s been like these last three months,” he said, he felt the quinjet settle and he removed his earpiece as the engines slowly shut down, “it’s been good, but she’s only been Tony and I. She doesn’t know you two.”

Sam was by his side as he finished speaking, and slapped a hand on his shoulder, “Well now she can get to know us.”

Sam walked down the ramp and towards the Tower, and then Nat appeared by Steve’s side next, “$20 bucks says she’ll kick his ass if he surprises her.”

“I don’t want to bet against that, I’d lose,” Steve replied. Nat grinned and walked past him.

“Then you better lead the way, Cap,” she called over his shoulder.

Steve made his way inside past his companions. He slowed his pace when he didn’t see any sign of. . . well anything. The place looked untouched. He felt his stomach twist in his pit as he took a couple steps towards the kitchen. It was empty as well.

“Steve?” Sam asked. Beside him, Nat raised her brows as she watched Steve’s movements.

Steve, on the other hand, picked up a green takeout menu, and held it in his hands. You didn’t order takeout, not that he has seen. That’s when Steve looked up and saw, resting ever so predominantly on the island in the kitchen in the dark--

Mjolnir.

Thor was here.

Across town, moseying through Central Park, Thor and you were enjoying your day together. The cool wind, the interactions, just being here in the city. The day went like this: you left the Tower with no problem, except the fact you earned stares from people around you. Apparently, Thor was well known. Great for him, not so much for you. While all the attention was on him, you felt uncomfortable in the mix of things. He noticed, and when he got the chance he whisked you away to an alley.

“Right, if you could step back for a moment,” he said. You raised a brow at him but obliged, taking a couple of steps away from him. Thunder roared above you, and in the blink of an eye a strike of lightning hit Thor, and shocked you. When he appeared again he was dressed in civilian clothes. All in the blink of an eye.

“Nice trick,” you commented, and he shrugged playfully.

You think you walked around a majority of the city, being flowed into crowds and now not being paid much attention. You both got breakfast, they let him eat for free of course, and you watched in awe as he downed literally everything.

“So what is Asgard exactly?” you asked him. He looked up at you as he chewed, and swallowed his food.

“It’s one of the Nine Realms. We are peacekeepers, looking over the other eight realms and their safety,” he pointed at you with his fork, “including you Midgarddians.”

“Midgarddians,” you repeated and he nodded, shoving more food into his mouth, “do they not feed you on Asgard?”

He chuckled, using a napkin to wipe his lips, “You’re funny, just like Tony,”

You shrugged, “I think I’m funnier, but we can debate that at a later time.”

Thor and you got along fairly well. As the sun got higher in the sky, and even as it began to fall, you were enjoying yourself. He told you about how he was supposed to be King, but he wasn’t ready, not yet. He needed to find himself, the good part of himself, that’s why he comes back to Earth often. The Avengers needed him, he said. He was the best Avenger.

Of course, that was his words not yours.

But right now, the sun was starting to fall faster, but you both walked side by side through the park. Your arms were crossed over your body, and his hands rested inside the hoodie he had (somehow) summoned.

“So what happened next?” he asked you.

He wanted to know everything. You glanced at him and he met your gaze, and you looked down to your feet. You weren’t telling him much, but enough information for him to understand “what happened”.

“When I was old enough, they started sending me on more. . . specialized missions,” you sighed, “extortion, black mail, and disposing if necessary. I’ve met more politicians and world leaders than I care to admit.”

He listened to you, not interrupting you at all. Even when your stroll slowed, he slowed too, making sure he stayed by your side. You rubbed your arms and chuckled beneath your breath.

“Then after, it was always the same. Mission report. Interrogation. Recondition if they felt it was necessary. I was sure I was going to die there, as dreadful as that sounds, and one day someone attacked our base,” you smiled, “it was you guys, or well, some of you guys.”

Thor nodded, “That sounds painful for you,” his accented voice said lowly as he squinted down at you, “but you look to be doing better.”

“Yeah, I guess I am,” you shrugged, your teeth chattered lightly, “Tony has helped a lot. And Steve.”

Thor noted your trembles and paused, un zipping the hoodie which caused you to stop. Turning to him you began to protest as he peeled the hoodie from his body and went to place it around you.

“No, I’m fine--”

“That’s quite alright,” he cut you off, wrapping you in the warm fabric, “I don’t need it in all honesty.”

You weaved your arms through the large sleeves, and smiled at him. There was a glimmer of something in his eyes, but you quickly straightened yourself and began walking again. Thor smiled to himself and quickly got back next to you, a little closer so his arms grazed yours. Lucky for you, the cool wind covered your flushed cheeks.

Just as you both started to see the road before you, the two of you casually talking, a familiar figure and face made you slow your pace.

“Shit,” you mumbled. Thor looked from you and forward, seeing the same person. But he smiled.

“Ah, Steve!” he greeted, his long legs carrying him faster to the curb. You, on the other hand, took your time. And seeing the look on Steve’s face really made your steps slow. Steve’s glare shifted from you to a more friendly look at Thor, who gripped his hand in a handshake. Thor noticed, of course, but smiled nonetheless. Thor glanced over his shoulder to you, who was only just getting to the curb. You eyed the motorcycle, ignoring both of their looks.

“You two been out all day?” Steve questioned.

“We have,” Thor said, and you bit your lip beside him, “(Y/N) was nice enough to show me to a diner she had been eyeing.”

“Is that so,” Steve said, placing his hands into his jacket, “that was nice of you.”

Oh you knew you were in for it. Big time.

“We were just about to head back to the Tower,” you said, and motioned to the motorcycle, “oh man. There’s not enough room for all of us. How about Thor and I meet you back there?”

Steve shook his head, “No, I think you better come back with me,” he paused, grabbing the helmet from the bike and holding it out to you, “Thor has ways of getting back before us.”

Thor glanced between the two of you. You, with a narrowed look on your face, and Steve with an even sterner look on his. Thor, rubbed his hands together.

“Yes, I sure do,” he turned to you for a moment, and grabbed one of your hands, holding it in his own, “thank you for joining me today.”

You nodded at him and he released your hand, and backed away a few steps before turning around and walking back into the park. You looked back to Steve, who’s glare never changed. You begrudgingly took the helmet from him, and he turned to the bike beside you two. He swung one leg over and settled down onto the seat, grabbing hold of the handlebars before him and roaring the engine to life. You swung your leg over as well, resting behind him on the seat. Your legs wrapped around him from the back, pressed against either side of his torso, and you placed the helmet on your head, strapping it on snugly.

Neither of you said a word, and he didn’t pull away until you hesitantly wrapped your arms around his wide body. As he pulled away from the curb, and started back towards the Tower, you pressed against him with each start and stop, but the silence under the engine is what made you uncomfortable. As each moment passed, you were brought closer and closer to the Tower, and your stomach dropped lower and lower.

Steve pulled into a garage (one you didn’t know existed) and carefully kicked the motorcycle into place. As he did that, you got off the bike, eagerly removing the helmet to free yourself. As the engine cut off and silence filled the garage, Steve sat there for a moment, and rested his hands on his thighs. You didn’t leave, you just stood there and stared at him. But you couldn’t take the silence.

“I’m sorry--”

“No you’re not,” he said in a low voice. You frowned at him as he turned his head to look at you. He got up, taking a couple steps towards you, his gaze was. . . different, “do you know what you risked by doing this?”

You huffed and shook your head, “You and Tony weren’t going to let me ever leave.”

“You’re damn right,” he said, his voice rising a bit, “because you don’t know what it’s like out there. And what if someone recognizes you? Do you forget that you’re supposed to be dead?”

“Of course I don’t forget,” you exploded, “I’m reminded of that every fucking day! Being  _ stuck  _ in here, and doing the same thing every single day,” you exclaimed. Steve’s eyes softened, but you cut him off, “I told you I wanted to be free, Steve. . . This,” you motioned around, “this isn’t free.”

You shoved the helmet in his arms and he took it, and watched you walk away to the elevator. He stared as you went, letting you disappear and he looked down at the helmet you had worn. In all of his irritation and anger, even though he was trying to protect you, you had looked so happy in that park. Just like you said. . . Free.

Steve left you alone. For the next several hours he left you alone. You didn’t come to dinner, and he grew agitated. Thor came over to him and sat next to Steve on the couch.

“Is everything alright?” he asked, sipping at a beer he had found.

“Yeah, of course,” Steve said, nearly brushing him off. Thor, smacked his lips, not that the beer did much for him, but he admired the taste.

“Tell me,” he said, leaning forward to rest his arms on his legs, “is she seeing anybody?”

Steve raised a brow, “Who?”

“Why (Y/N) of course,” Thor replied, and chuckled, “who else?”

Steve didn’t know how to answer, but as he glanced at the time he stood, “Sorry, I gotta go do something,” he replied. Thor watched him walk away and looked on in confusion. But Steve disappeared up the stairs, skipping every other step to climb faster. One flight, two flights, three, he stopped on your floor and took a deep breath. He knew he had to apologize before you went to bed for the night. He quietly stepped down the hallways, closer and closer the wooden door that concealed you, and paused before it. He raised his closed hand up and rasped on the door lightly.

A moment, then a few moments passed before he heard movement behind the door. He took a step back and shoved his hands into the pockets of his pants and nearly held his breath until the door was pulled open. Soft light filtered over him as you appeared half behind the door. You looked him up and down, and Steve offered a small smile.

“Can I come in?” he asked.

You stared at him for a second, but it felt like forever before you opened the door wider and stepped to the side. Steve took a couple steps past you and you closed the door behind him, he heard it click shut and then turned to you. He took in the sight of you, suddenly very aware of the fact he had never seen you in anything this light. A black average tank top, what looked to be soft black shorts that stopped high on your legs, and he could see, well, every detail of your body under the cloth. Most noticeable to him were the two peaks under your tank top. But he did his best to ignore that observation. You made it easier by crossing your arms over your chest.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly to you, he shook his head and glanced down to his feet before meeting your gaze again, “I know you want to be out there, living your life. Tony he’s been working with Pepper to figure it out--”

“Steve, I’m sorry,” you cut him off, “I know I shouldn’t have gone. I know it may get you two in trouble.”

“You know?”

You nodded, “I know the deal, Tony told me,” you paused as Steve nodded. Of course he did, “I just couldn’t help myself. I’m sorry.”

“Well, let’s just call it even,” Steve offered and you smiled at him.

“I can do that,” you chuckled. Steve smiled at you and you walked past him to your bed, “I was getting ready to start this Office show, do you care to join.”

Steve watched you plop down on your bed and pull the covers over you, and you looked to him with curiosity. You tapped the spot next to you, and Steve shrugged.

“I’ve got time.”


	5. You're my Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yikes lol 5.7k words why?? bc we're getting into the action bby AHH but still fo much fluff

How did it end up like this?

The last thing you remembered was resting against a large pile of pillows and your eyes were glued to the screen (well, kind of screen, you didn’t know what Tony called it really). Steve had planted himself into one spot beside you and sat against the headboard, a few pillows behind him, and arms crossed over his chest. You were sprawled out next to him with that pile of pillows under your arm, but you were both enjoying the presence of one another.

So how did it end up like this?

Like clockwork, Steve was the first to wake up. The darkness that surrounded him was unfamiliar, the scent that covered the room was even more so, and the weight that overlapped him was definitely not familiar. The more he blinked the more his eyes adjusted, and the only light that came in was from the cracks the window let in. But the sight before him made him freeze. That weight was you, and you were half resting on his chest, one hand sprawled across him and the other tucked away to his side. He rested his head back into the scented pillows (it was lavender, he knew it was) and blinked up at the ceiling. 

He wasn’t sure if it was the beating of his heart that made you stir, but after a few minutes of his continuous  _ what now’s  _ in his head, you shifted against him. Steve’s arm retracted from your back and laid out across the rest of the pillows, and your hand ran back up to your chin. He couldn’t see it, but the realization that you were touching something made your eyes shoot open. You stayed there for a moment though as you tried to dart your eyes around, but it was no use. Steve cleared his throat and you inwardly cursed yourself.

Much too fast you sat up, removing your hands from his chest and didn’t look his way. Steve sat up as well and you rubbed the back of your neck, before finally meeting his look.

“Uh. . Sorry,” you said, and he shook his head.

“No, I- No it’s fine.” He rambled off. You nodded and shot up from the bed, and Steve stood as well, but you both met each other's stares. Steve cleared his throat and you nodded, again at him.

“Right, I’m going to. . Go.”

“Right,” you nodded, and with one final pinched smile Steve walked to your door, paused, and finally left the room.

You rubbed your neck and eyed the messy sheets you once were laying in. How did that even happen? How had you managed to not only fall asleep, but get as comfortable as to practically be on top of him like that?

It was the trust. It must have been you trusting him to let your guard down like that. It was uncharacteristic for you. Very uncharacteristic. Extremely. Uncharacteristic. But it was also uncharacteristic of Steve.

Steve couldn’t get out of the room fast enough. He didn’t know if it was from embarrassment or from the guilt that built in his chest. His feet carried him down the hall and down the stairs until he came into the view of the kitchen. Coffee. He needed coffee. Not that he was a particularly huge fan of it, he needed something to focus on at this moment.

His plans though were cut short when he saw the man inside the kitchen. It was Tony. And he looked up from his place near the coffee pot and set his mug down, before holding up his phone.

“We had an agreement,” Tony started, “you were supposed to be here yesterday.”

“Nat had an unexpected leave, Tony I never thought she’d actually-”

“What, sneak out? Disobey my rules? Come on, Steve. You must know that she would do it.”

“I don’t think you giver her enough credit, Tony,” Steve said. Tony chuckled a bit at that.

“You think you know my sister better than I do?”

“No of course not!” He said rather defensively. Tony raised his brow and Steve sighed, “Tony, I went for her as soon as I returned and figured it out. But you should've seen her out there, she was smiling, laughing, she looked. . . Happy.”

Tony fell silent, his eyes trailed down to the mug in front of him as he processed what Steve was telling him, and he gripped the edge of the counter, “If I reveal the truth about her, Steve, her freedom? It’s gone. She’ll be a Stark again. She’ll be watched, and scrutinized, and it’ll never be the same.”

Steve smiled at his friends, “It’s a choice you have to give her, Tony.”

Tony looked up from his pensive state, and Steve’s smile made his sigh, “Please tell me Thor didn’t try to make a move on her.”

Steve chuckled a bit, “No, he didn’t.”

Tony put his hand on his heart and mumbled a quiet thank you to the ceiling. And then Steve left him to his own devices. Tony took another sip from his coffee as his phone buzzed, and he took it from his pocket to answer the message.

The original plan he had was to be back yesterday to introduce you to Pepper, formally. But then she got tied up at work and with your little exploration, it delayed things. He still wanted to introduce you, and what better way than a party, right? Since most of the team was here, he could get Barton and Banner in since it was relatively early in the day, and Pepper flew back with him - it would be perfect. He knew how to throw a good party.

He hummed as he made his way to hib lab close by, and sat in a chair when a call started to come through. The unknown I.D. made him hum into his drink, but accepted it either way. He wasn’t surprised to see Coulson appear before him.

“Ah, Coulson! Was yesterday’s lecture not enough for you?” Tony cheerfully asked, but didn’t earn much of a reaction from the recipient.

“I’m calling you because we have another mission for you guys,” he started off, and Tony raised a brow at him.

“Another Hydra base?” He asked, and Coulson nodded, “Your team can’t handle it?”

“This one has special circumstances,” he said loosely, and Tony took an audible slurp from his mug, “the intel we’ve gathered hint at their being two possible enhanced people. Twins.”

“Sounds interesting,” he said, and Coulson nodded.

“They also have Loki’s scepter.”

That made Tony look up from his mug and Coulson smiled at him, “I already have Barton and Banner inbound. They should be arriving soon.”

“Thank boss,” Tony said and with the flick of his hands the call disappeared. As the screen disappeared, his eyes landed on you leaning against the frame of the entrance.

“You’re leaving,” you stated. Tony sighed and nodded, but waved his hand for you to enter. You did, slowly crossing into the room and over to him, and he spun in his chair to grab a device, tossing it in the air and catching it.

“Hold this for me,” he said, and practically shoved it into your palm. You looked at the circular device in your hand, and something sprouted from it. You glanced between it and Tony, and it completely covered your hand in metal, and stopped at your wrist. You wiggled your fingers and looked back at Tony who only smiled.

“What is this?” You asked, and looked back to the silver metal that covered your hand.

“It’s just a prototype for what I hope will be a nano suit,” he explained, “just wanted you to try it.”

You nodded as he spoke, and held the hand up, “Well? Does it look good on me?”

“Fits you perfectly,” he laughed, and you grinned.

“How does it-” before you could finish your thought, the metal began to disappear, back into the circle of your palm. Your eyes shot back to Tony who was only grinning, and then he carefully took it from your hand. The sound of a jet started to sound in the building, and you frowned, but when Tony faced you you faked a smile.

“Don’t do that,” he told you, standing from his chair so that he was level with you, and you shrugged.

“What? Smile?” You asked.

He tapped your chest, “Fake it.” You frowned at him, and he opened his arm for you, and you let him place it around your neck, and your arm wrapped around his body. You both began to walk to the landing pad the quinjet was most likely headed.

“I’m sorry for yesterday,” you told him, and he only hummed next to you.

“I know,” he said, looking over to you with one of his daring smiles, “I’m sorry for keeping you locked up in here. I just. . . I wasn’t ready for you to have to make that choice.”

“What choice?” You asked and he paused. The landing pad was nearby, blocked by glass doors, but Tony removed his arm from you and grabbed your hands in his, and you raised a brow.

“If people make the connection of who you are, and they will, that’s it. That freedom you want, it’s gone. When people look at you, all they’ll see is your last name. You’ll be a Stark.”

You frowned at him, “Tony. . . I’m already a Stark. I was always going to be a Stark,” you took your hands from his and cupped his face, giving him a good squeeze and smiled, “you’re my family, Tony. No one can diminish that, or change it.”

Tony smiled and he took you into his arms. He held you as close as he could, and you wrapped your arms around his neck. The two Stark’s stood there together. And from that point on, they would always stand together. As a family.

* * *

The mission went south, as Tony so elegantly put it.

The amount of people that now occupied the Tower was too much for you. When the team left, you had slithered away to your room, and when they returned you were in the gym, on the treadmill. You breathed evenly as your legs pushed you on, you were covered in sweat, your heart was beating in your chest, but you focused on the window to the outside. JARVIS didn’t alert you to their return, so when someone suddenly appeared at your side, your feet betrayed you.

You were sent a couple feet from the treadmill and looked up in anguish at who stood above you. You painted while you stayed there on the ground, and peeled the earphones from your ear, and came back to reality, and his apologies.

“Geez, I’m sorry, are you okay?” Steve asked you and knelt to your side, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to scare you.”

You narrowed your eyes at him a bit and he was taken back by it, you pushed yourself up from the ground and walked past him back to the moving treadmill, “You didn’t scare me.”

He nodded slowly while he watched you turn the machine off, and grab the water bottle you were using. You walked past him towards the door and he followed you.

“Hey-woah, hold on,” he called for you, and you slowed your steps as the door opened, but as soon as he was by your side you moved on again,and he sighed, “what’s going on with you?”

That was the wrong question to ask, apparently. You froze in your track and Steve stopped, seeing your glare narrow in on him, “Nothing is going on, Steve.” 

It was cold, it wasn’t you. At least not the you he had grown to know over these last few months. But you turned away from him again, and he saw it best to let you continue on your way to the stairs. Each person you passed to avoided coming in any contact with them, and that’s when Steve’s eyes landed on Natasha, who was just about to round the corner when you rushed past her. She looked back at Steve, and he walked up to join her.

“Something’s wrong,” he commented, and Nat looked around.

“You don’t see the problem?” She asked.

Steve looked around at the commotion in the room. It was mostly SHIELD personnel, quite a number of them in all honesty. Realization hit him and his shoulders slumped down, and Nat patted his shoulder.

“I’m so glad we’ll have another intelligent woman around here,” she playfully said, and turned to walk away from him.

Steve rolled his eyes at her and chose to ignore her comment. What he had to worry about was this party Stark-- sorry, no Tony wanted to have tonight. The preparations had begun with alcohol deliveries, food deliveries, and such.

Time seemed to pass by quickly after that. Tony hopped up the stairs, followed by Pepper, and spun around to grab at her hands when they got to your level. Pepper chuckled lowly, and shook her head at the sight of him. The festivities were just about to kick off downstairs, and the sight of Tony so eager for them to meet made her heart warm.

“Tony, I’ve never seen you like this,” she commented and he hummed, and pressed a kiss to her hand, then the other.

“My two girls are finally about to meet, after months,” he shrugged his shoulder with a smile, “and you have seen me like this, remember my birthday?”

“I try to forget that,” she quipped, and their hands laced together and she patted his shoulder with the other, “you were a drunk mess.”

“Let’s forget about that part,” he joked when the pair neared your door, shut as always, “let’s focus on the bright side of that night!”

“Which was what exactly?” She asked and he shook his head, and lightly tapped on your door.

“I see your point,” he smiled and after a few seconds the door opened and you appeared behind it.

Not dressed. Well dressed, but in sweats. Tony frowned, and you crossed arms and stared at him.

“(Y/N),” he said.

“Tony,” you mimicked.

Tony glanced to his side at Pepper, who gave him a reassuring smile. Tony met your gaze again and motioned past you, “Can we come in?”

You nodded and stepped aside, and they walked past you. You closed the door behind them and moved around them so you could take a seat on the couch in the room. Tony glanced at Pepper again before he looked back at you. You had your eyes glued on him though, and he smiled at you.

“I wanted you to meet someone,” he took a step forward and guided Peper forward as well, “this is Pepper Potts.”

She extended her elegant hand out to you, and you looked from Tony’s face to hers, then at her outstretched hand. You looked back to her eyes, and she offered a small smile. You again looked to her hand, and very carefully you reached yours out, and shook her hand.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” she greeted, and you nodded, but pulled your hand back to your lap.

“You too,” you said, and looked back at Tony.

“Why aren’t you dressed?” He asked you. You looked to the bed the dress you were given was placed, and rubbed your arms a bit.

“I. . . I don’t know if i can do it.” Tony’s smile fell, and he looked over to Pepper. She nodded at Tony and he released her hand, and moved to sit next to you on the couch. You glanced his way and he carefully grabbed your hands so he could hold them.

“I won’t force you to do it,” he said, and you sighed, “I know it must be a lot. All those people. But if you choose to come, remember what we said today?”

You nodded, and he smiled, “We’re family. I’ll be right there every step of the way.”

You locked eyes with him and then looked back to the bed, and he already knew what you were going to ask, and he patted your hands. You watched as he stood and returned to his place next to Pepper, and you mouthed a thank you to him. Pepper smiled one last time your way, and you went back to focus on the dress when the door opened, and clicked shut. You held your arms again and stood, and shifted over to the bed. You didn’t know who picked this number out but it certainly was not Tony. You lifted the black fabric and rubbed it between your fingers and grumbled to yourself.

The only reason you decided to throw the dress on was because you knew how hard he was trying. He was trying so hard to get you to be comfortable these last few months. You owed this to him, to at least try. You stripped down and completely changed. It was a strapless number, and you had to go searching for something to cover your breasts that would work, and shimmied on a silky pair of panties. Getting the dress on was the hardest part, it was figure hugging (if you were still an active. . whatever, this would’ve done the trick) and zipped on the side. It hit above your knee and there was a pair of pretty black heels with a red bottom to accompany it. The makeup you had was minimal, so you kept it simple. A little mascara, some brown to open your crease, a light shimmer on the lids, and a shiny lip gloss with a hint of cherry red in it. You tucked some hair behind your ear to smooth it back and looked yourself over.

The nervousness on your face was apparent, and you smiled sadly to yourself. You can do it. You can do it for Tony. And you can do it for yourself too. So you stood up and walked to the door, and reached for the handle. You can do it. This. You can. With a tremble in your hand, you pulled the door open and made your way downstairs.

The party was in motion, for maybe an hour now. Tony was with Pepper, who slapped Rhodey on the shoulder as he passed with Maria Hill, and Steve was chatting with Sam. Steve took a sip from the drink in his hand, even though it wasn’t going to do anything for him. He took a sip and scanned the room for something.

“Have you found a place in Brooklyn yet?” Sam asked, which garnered Steve’s attention once more. He shook his head.

“I don’t think I can afford Brooklyn,” Steve joked, and Sam chuckled lightly. He took a sip from the beer in his hand and motioned to his friend.

“Well, home is home, you know?” He said. Steve smiled a bit.

“I can’t say I know what that feels like anymore,” he quipped, and Sam nodded a bit.

“I think you’re full of it, but I’ll still agree with you.” Sam grinned and Steve raised a brow at him, “Oh come on man. All that looking around, I know who you’re searching for,” he paused to look behind him, and motioned his drink to the stairs, “and there they are.”

Steve turned to look behind him and stopped when his eyes landed on you. His mouth fell open a bit before he very quickly closed his mouth. He couldn’t help his eyes look you over as he took in every detail of your appearance. The first thing he saw was your legs and how soft they looked under this light, the way your muscles flexed as each foot brought you down each step. He looked up your legs to the black fabric that covered your body, and the way it hugged your hips. He could very clearly see each dip, perfectly formed, and then up more to your bare shoulders. Even your shoulders looked smooth, despite the tiny imperfections on your back. Oh, your back. It was exposed, and he could see your shoulders, which were tight. He blinked and you were headed towards Tony, who seemed to notice you at the last moment, and Steve was knocked from his trance when Steve slapped a hand onto his shoulder.

“Dude, what was that?”

“What-”

Sam rolled his eyes at his friend, “How long have you been into her?”

The question made him look down at the drink in his hand, and wonder just that. But he shook his head, and ignored the implication Sam was trying to give.

“I’m not into her,” Steve replied, taking a sip from his drink and still locked onto you across the room. Sam shook his head next to his friend.

“Yeah. Okay,” was all he said.

You made it over to Tony despite the eyes that lingered on you as you passed, and linked your arm through his unexpectedly. Tony turned slightly and when his eyes landed on you, the drink he was sipping on was coughed down the wrong tube. The coughing fit made the group of people he was in turn in question, and Pepper continued coughing, though the smile on her face was apparent. Tony coughed a bit as he set his drink down, and turned to face you better. You looked at him with a raised brow, and he clapped a hand onto your arm.

“You decided to come,” he commented, finally looking you over completely. He glanced over to Natasha, who he could see had a grin on her face as she spoke with Bruce.

“I thought I should at least try,” you paused when he smiled, “not just for you. But for me.”

“I’m glad you are,” he quickly touched Pepper’s back and whispered something into her ear, and she nodded. Tony looked back to you and rubbed your arm, “do you want me to introduce you to some people?”

You nodded, and he began to walk you around. He introduced you to the “important people” (his words, not yours). James Rhodes (everyone calls him Rhodey he said, and he also jokingly apologized for you having to deal with Tony’s antics if he wasn’t around), Clint Barton, Natasha Romanoff, and Dr. Bruce Banner, and as you made your way around the room, you passed Steve. Tony briefly introduced you to Sam Wilson, who was Steve’s companion, and when you shook his hand, you glanced at Steve and the drink in his hand.

“I thought you didn’t drink,” you threw out, and Tony glanced between you two. Steve cleared his throat.

“Not a lot, but sometimes.” 

You nodded, though still confused, you let Tony whisk you away again. Steve though kept his eyes on you, and Sam beside him shook his head. The night carried on and you grew a bit more comfortable, and had a couple of drinks. Tony was surprised to see you down the liquid easily, and after two he was surprised when you made a little joke about it.

“I always thought I could handle that better than you,” you had said. Tony glared, but Pepper laughed beside him. You smiled. Genuinely smiled for the first time that day. So he let it slide.

When the “unimportant” people left, those who remained settled into the couch near the bar. Tony leaned against a chair Peper and sat in, and she rubbed his leg, Clint was in the chair beside them, Nat and Maria on one couch, Sam in a chair close by, and you had settled onto the couch by Steve, and Thor. You had removed the heels on your feet, and nursed the drink in your hand. Steve glanced at you and noticed the slight flush in your cheeks, and while others spoke around you, he leaned down to say something.

“You look to be enjoying yourself,” he said slowly. You smiled, sipping at the drink.

“I am,” you paused and looked at him, “are you?”

He glanced between your eyes and the smile on your lips, and nodded, “I am.”

Suddenly you were enamoured in the conversation that was occurring when Clint motioned to Thor’s hammer that was rested on the table, “But it’s a trick!”

Thor chuckled beside you, and settled into the couch, “Oh, no, it’s much more than that.”

Clint scoffed, “Uh yeah, “Whosoever be he worthy shall. . haveth the power!” Whatever man. It’s a trick.”

Thor motioned to his hammer, and you took another sip of your drink, “Well please, be my guest.”

Clint scoffed again, but then Tony chimed in, “Come on, Barton.”

“Wh- Really?” Clint asked.

“Yes, please!” Thor exclaimed next to you. Clint thought about it for a second, and stood, earning a couple of whoops from those around. You smiled as you watched.

“Oh this is going to be  _ beautiful _ ,” Rhodey chimed in.

“Clint, we know you’ve had a tough week. We won’t hold it against you if you can’t get it up,” Tony joked. Clint proceeded to give him the finger and everyone laughed. You did too. Steve glanced at you as you did, and smiled.

“You know I’ve seen this before right? In New Mexico,” he wrapped his hands around the hammer and tugged, but nothing happened, “I don’t know how you do it man.”

Clint went to sit down again when Tony grinned, “Smell the silent judgement?”

Clint motioned to Tony and the hammer, “Please, Stark, be my guest.”

Tony stood, removing his jacket and handing it to Pepper who smiled, holding it in her lap. Tony rolled his sleeves up and a couple people sat up.

“Oh yes, here we go,” Natasha had said. You giggled a bit to yourself, and set your drink down on the table before he passed. Tony winked your way and you couldn’t help but roll your eyes. Tony rubbed his hands together and sighed happily.

“I’m never one to shrink from a challenge,” he began and Natasha groaned.

“Just get on with it,” she said, taking a sip from her beer.

“It’s physics,” Tony said as he rolled his head and shoulder a bit, and Bruce laughed out loud.

“Physics! Aha!” He chuckled.

“So if I lift this hammer, I rule Asgard?” Tony asked, and looked at Thor. Thor nodded and tony nodded, “my first act is to reinstate Prima Nocta.”

Pepper glared at Tony but he mimicked something to her you couldn’t see, but he grinned nonetheless. He put his leg on the table and wrapped his hands around the hammer, and began to tug. It didn’t budge for him either. You covered your mouth with your fingers and rested an elbow on your knee.

Tony glared, “‘ll be right back.” He said and quickly disappeared. You watched him disappear downstairs to his lab, and then come out just a few moments later with something on his hand. It was part of his armour. He gripped the hammer once more and tugged, but still nothing happened.

It went on like that for a little bit longer. Both Tony and Rhodey tried together, and failed. Then Bruce tried, and failed, And the commotion began to die back down. You looked beside you at Steve and put your hand casually on his leg. He looked at you suddenly, and you pointed at the hammer.

“You should try,” you said. Sam close by clapped.

“Yes, please, Steve try it.”

Steve met your gaze and you smiled, and he sighed, but smiled too. He stood and you removed your hand from his leg. He puts his hands up when some cheer, which included you. You watched as he readied himself, grabbing a hold of the hammer and tugged at it. You could have sworn you saw it lift just a tiny bit, but when Steve didn’t lift it, you blinked. You must have imagined it. Thor laughs beside you as Steve returns to your side.

“See? Nothing.”

Tony motions to Natasha, “Widow?”

She laughs, and leans back into the couch, “Oh no. No, that is definitely not a question I need answered.”

They talk amongst themselves, but your attention went to the elevators below. You didn’t know if it was the alcohol you consumed, or if it was true. But you could have sworn you saw that elevator light on, like it was moving. Steve glanced at you and saw the empty expression on your face, and lightly tapped you with his shoulder.

“You okay?” He whispered. You blinked as you returned to the present, and nodded, meeting his gaze. He looked you over but still smiled, and you looked back to the elevator. A few seconds passed and you believed it to be nothing, until you saw the one of the doors open. You stood, which gained Steve’s attention next to you, and before he could ask what was wrong (again), a screeching noise filled the room. Everyone covered their ears, standing abruptly around you, and then it stopped. Your eyes never left that metal downstairs, and everyone turned to what you were focused on. A mangled suit that shuffled into the open.

“Worthy. .” The voice echoed, “No. How could any of you be worthy? You’re all killers.”

Steve took a step forward to grab your hand, and he looked at Tony, “Stark-”

“JARVIS,” Tony called out.

“I’m sorry,” the voice said again, “I was asleep. No. . I was a dream.”

Tony pulled something from his pocket and tapped on it incessantly, “Reboot, Legionnaire OS, we’ve got a buggy suit.”

You watched still in awe and the metal suit, took a couple more steps downstairs, “There was a terrible noise. And I was tangled in strings,” it paused and you swallowed the lump in your throat, “I had to kill the other guy. He was a good guy.”

Steve’s hands gripped yours a bit tighter, and he pushed you behind him a bit and called out, “You killed someone?”

“Wouldn’t have been my first call,” it paused and looked up at everyone, “but down in the real world we’re faced with ugly choices.”

Thor took a step forward, gripping his hammer, “Who sent you?”

“I see a suit of armour around the world.”

The voice that filled the room was none other than Tony’s. Eyes darted to him and Bruce let out a small comment.

“Ultron.”

You didn’t know what it meant, but the look on Tony’s face led you to believe he did. But the voice below spoke again.

“In the flesh. Or no, not yet. Not in this chrysalis,” its glowing eyes looked up again, “but I’m ready. I’m on a mission.”

“What mission?” Natasha asked.

“Peace in our time.”

It was simple, but the glass that shattered around wasn’t. Steve’s arm surrounded you as more metal suits flew into the room. Natasha ran behind the bartop, Bruce not far behind, but you didn’t know what to do. You were beginning to panic. Steve turned to you and you placed a hand to your chest as his arms covered you, shielding you from what was about to unfold.

“Stark!” he yelled to Tony, who was trying to shield Pepper amongst tapping on his phone.

“One sec, one sec!” Tony yelled.

_ We are here to help _ .

The suits were closing in, repeating the same line. Tony keeps tapping at the phone, but they keep coming closer.

_ It's unsafe _ .

More suits enter the room, but they attack. One right towards the middle, to you and Steve. Steve releases you and kicks the table up, but the suit flies through it and through you both, knocking both into seperate directions. Chaos was around you, and suddenly you were right back where you were months ago. You didn’t know what exactly had happened in the few seconds you were immobilized, but as you pushed yourself up off the ground a bit, you pulled yourself to the piano. The broken glass you passed over would be sure to leave a mark, but you were focused on one thing.

The gun that was hidden under it.

You had come across it sometime while you had explored this room, but that was a story for another time. It was simple, and you pulled it off the bottom and readied it when you heard that familiar hovering sound. You stood from your position and fired one, two, three shots into the Iron Legion or whatever Tony had called it that was focused on Natasha and Bruce. Straight at the neck like and into the wiring like Tony had pointed out one day. It fell to the ground, and you heard the shatter of another somewhere else.

But you stared at the gun in your hand, and lowered it down to notice the look from Natasha. Your hand trembled, and suddenly Tony was at your side, and he noticed the shake in your hand. You emptied the chamber and removed the rounds, and dropped it to your feet.

But that look in your eyes you couldn’t shake it if you tried.

“That was dramatic,” the half completed suit said, “I’m sorry, I know you mean well. You just,” it paused, “didn’t think it through. You want to protect the world, but you don’t want it to change. How is humanity saved if it’s not allowed to evolve?”

It moved to one of the destroyed Iron Legions, and grabbed its head, “With these? These  _ puppets _ ,” the emphasis it gave was by crushing the helmet in its own hand, “there is only one path to peace,” it dropped the destroyed robot and looked at the group, “The Avengers’ extinction.”

Suddenly Thor yelled, and threw his hammer at the robot and it fell to pieces to the floor, and his hammer returned to him. As the comments sunk in, and people checked on one another. You sat there and let Tony grab your face in his hands, and look you over. You sat there because you knew he needed to see you were fine. But you weren’t on the inside. Not as the words “Ultron” said rang in your ears.

_ I had strings. . . but now I’m free. _


	6. The Truth About Paris

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg this one is over 7k words my baddddd, but a lot of development happens with Steve in this one - and the reader I think is able to come to terms with the life she wants for herself. there are details in here that I wanna see you guys can catch that will be important to the story later so ;) happy hunting!

_ The hand that grazed across your cheek stung on impact, throwing your gaze to some place on the wall. You felt the blood trickle from your nose to your mouth and you straightened your head so you could face the man who attacked you. Well, really you had attacked him first (not physically, but your manipulative seduction was compromised somehow) but man was he angry at your deception. You were planning to meet him for dinner where you would try and pull more information by whispering sweet nothings in his ear, but you never made it to dinner when four men had broken into your hotel room. Not even really broke in; they had the damn key. It was typical kidnapping procedure, something covered your mouth and you blacked out within seconds. _

_ But here, right now, your attention was on the man you had once grazed your fingers down, and he was in a new light, as you were to him. The intel you had gotten seemed to have left out the striking detail that he was not as passive as mentioned. No, certainly not. But who could really blame him? You most certainly couldn’t. But you forced the strained and terrified look on your face as he walked closer, trying to show some kind of fright to him. _

_ “Pourquoi as-tu menti à moi, mon amour?” (Why have you been lying to me, my love?) He asked you while wiping his hands with a rag that was riddled with some of your blood. The four men stood in a semi-circle around you, watching as you shook your head timidly, your lip trembled as you watched him come closer. _

_ “Je ne sais pas ce que tu veux dire-” (I don’t know what you mean-) you tried to say but he threw the rag down, and gripped your wrist that was tied to the chair. _

_ “Ne me mens pas!” (Don’t lie to me!) He screamed in your face. You had closed your mouth as he eyed you before bringing one of his hands to your face and you twitched while he lightly dragged his fingers down your cheek. “Je vais vous demander encore une fois.” (I’ll ask you again) He paused to grab your chin in his palm, bringing you closer to him. “Pourquoi m'avez-vous menti?” (Why have you been lying to me?). _

_ You let out a soft sob, even if you didn’t mean it he bought everything you were giving to him, you could tell by the look in his eyes. This man was hurt, this man who was so in love with you (or the idea of you) and it made you stop for a moment. You searched his eyes for something, for an answer to his question perhaps. _

A knock made your mind come back to reality. To now. You squeezed your eyes tightly shut and pressed yourself into the corner behind the door who knew how long ago. Your fingers trembled as they hugged your knees and you shook your head at the memory. You felt everything in you tremble really, you hadn’t been able to collect your trainwreck of a mind since the events of tonight unfolded. After you emptied that gun and dropped it to the ground, it had probably set in for not only you, but Tony as well, that you. . . You were not just going to go back to a normal life like he wanted for you. Like you wanted for yourself.

Another knock on the door finally made you snap out of it. You let out a shaky sigh and used the wall behind you and to your side to push yourself up. You stumbled a bit but you grabbed the door handle and pulled it down to reveal someone behind the door. Your eyes ran up their frame as you took in the sight of Steve Rogers once again. Honestly? You were grateful it was him and not Tony.

Tony had enough on his plate right now it seemed. Maybe they all did.

Steve’s eyes looked you over and something seemed to click in his mind. His mouth opened once trying to form a sentence and his expression fell, but nothing came out. Instead, as if you already knew, you stepped aside for him to enter, and he did. You walked away from the door so Steve closed it behind him, and you wrapped your arms around yourself before speaking carefully.

“Qu'est ce-” You caught yourself mid sentence and straightened your back. “Um, sorry. . What are you doing here?”

You turned back to him and he eyed you again, choosing his words carefully as well. “I was seeing how you were.”

You forced a smile, giving him a light shake of your head. “Like I told Tony, I’m fine.”

Your smile fell as soon as you said it, and Steve shook his head. “Yeah and Tony may be telling himself to believe it, but I’m not.” He had taken a few steps towards you and put his hands into the pockets of his pants. You avoided his gaze. “So I’m seeing how you are.”

You scoffed a bit, shaking your head before looking back up to meet his eyes. “What am I supposed to say, huh? That the fact I just so easily picked up a gun and fired it at some murdery robot makes my insides warm?”

You were shaking your head as you spoke, and moved your arms to your side so you could press your fingernails into your palm, and Steve watched as you continued into a spiral and started to pace before him. “How am I supposed to tell you guys that I can’t stop thinking about everything I’ve done when there’s quite literally a demonic A.I. out there who wants to wipe you guys out?” You had pointed at him with that statement, and he took a careful step forward, though you didn’t notice as you paced back and forth once more.

“How am I supposed to tell you or Tony that I’m seeing them,  _ all  _ of them like they’re here? Like I’m killing them all over again.” You chuckled and Steve was nearing slowly so he could grab you. “How do I tell you that I feel like I’m empty?”

Steve had put a hand on your shoulder and you stopped pacing, but your eyes were stuck on a spot on the floor when the last part of your sentence fell from your lips. He could see tears build in the corner of your eyes. The air felt heavy with your revelations, but Steve was here for you. He just had to get you to see it through the haze in your mind.

“I thought that finally leaving Hydra’s grip and being here with Tony,” you paused and Steve watched as you glanced his way for a moment, “with you. . I thought that things would get easier. That the pain would stop, the memories and dreams of what I did would stop, but they haven’t. They’ll never let me live without some part of them in me.” Your voice dropped down to a whisper as you spoke of Hydra. “I’ll always be a monster.”

Steve’s other hand went to grab your other shoulder and he turned you to look at him. His hands went from your shoulder to cupping your face in his large hands, and forced you to meet his gaze. “You are _not_ a monster, do you hear me? You never were, and you never will be.” He wiped the tears that fell from your eyes gently. “You did the things they told you to do so you could _survive_. So that you could be here with your family, with Tony.” You gently nodded in the palm of his hands, and Steve brought his fingers up to push some hair behind your ears. “The things you’ve taken from them don’t make you a bad person. You _can_ do good with them, like Natasha has.”

Steve looked you over as your tears seemed to slow and he felt your hands go up under his elbows and trace back to his chest. You were reaching for him and he let you grab onto him in a hug, wrapping one of his arms around your body while his one hand stayed tangled in your hair as you wrapped yours around his neck. It was like he had scooped you up in an embrace and neither were arguing about it. The silence that had fallen in the room was heavy but not uncomfortable for Steve or yourself.

This was two people coming to understand one another. Trusting freely.

Steve felt you move against his chest so he carefully released you. You detangled yourself from him and looked from the ground up to meet his eyes. You searched for something in them like you had with the man in Paris, but just as easily as you had looked away from Marcelle all that time ago, you averted your gaze from Steve and looked around the room.

“It doesn’t feel the same without JARVIS,” you commented lowly. Steve glanced around before looking back at you.

“You should get some rest,” he said. You nodded, though you didn’t look at him and Steve sadly smiled. He turned back towards the door when you suddenly grabbed a hold of his hand. Your motion made him stop in his tracks and look back at you nearly in shock. You were also surprised in your actions, glancing from his hand in yours to his face and shaking your head as if in apology before letting it go.

“I’m sorry I-”

Steve shook his head. “No it’s okay,” he tried to reassure you but you just shook your head again.

“Steve can you. . Can you stay?” You were treading  _ very  _ carefully. He could see it in the way you darted your eyes over him before offering a small smile. “It’s too quiet-”

“I’ll stay,” he told you with a nod. “I can stay.”

This was uncharted territory. It was very unfamiliar for you, and for Steve too really. Both of you rested down against the mattress leaving a (probably to others) overwhelming amount of space between you both. But it was comfortable for you both. Steve rested on his back with his hands resting on his chest while you rested on your side facing away from him. He thought his purpose here was to comfort you into a lull, but he didn’t know you were still up and staring at the wall. It was hard for either of you to see in the darkness, so Steve just tried to listen to your breathing when he noticed how silent you were.

It was something you had learned from Hydra, but that's besides the point. Even with Steve’s presence your mind still raced with one more thought that you couldn’t shake. You didn’t know how much time had passed, you glanced at the dim clock to see it register 1:42 AM. Nearly an hour of silence had passed and you rubbed your face a bit against the pillow.

“Steve?” You whispered into the darkness, hoping he was still awake.

“Yeah?” He whispered back, eyeing you sideways. You moved again and he watched as you rolled over onto your back, closing some of the space that was still left between you two. He could see from the small amount of moonlight that came into the room that you looked to the ceiling in thought then over to him.

“Can I ask you a question?”

He nodded, and you edged up a bit higher on the pillow so your head was more even with his shoulder, and you sighed. “Steve have you ever. . been in love?”

He certainly was  _ not  _ expecting you to ask him that. He blinked a couple of times as he went over the answer in his head. Why were you asking? But you were watching him, and he felt that with everything you shared with him, he could share with you.

“I have been. Before the ice,” he admitted. “I don’t know if I knew it then, or if I realized it too late. But I was in love. Her name is Peggy.”

“Peggy,” you repeated, and Steve found himself nodding. “You said her name is.”

“She’s still alive,” he said and he didn’t know it but you frowned next to him. “I would visit her sometimes in D.C. in a nursing home. She has dementia and she would forget I went into the ice.” Steve smiled a bit to himself. “I would always tell her I couldn’t leave my best girl.”

You looked away from him as his story settled in with you. Steve had never shared this story with you, and suddenly you felt guilty for asking him to stay with you. You felt guilty for always needing his or Tony's presence when you were feeling something, because they have things they’re going through as well. You rested your head back into the pillow and looked up at the ceiling.

“Do you still love her?”

It was another loaded question. Steve thought it over and glanced your way. He could see you just looking up above, and he sighed a bit.

“I think a part of me always will,” he told you before turning his head to look at you fully. “Why are you asking this?”

“No reason,” you said and glanced at him. When you registered the pointed look on his face you did a double take. “What?”

“Why are you asking, (Y/N)?” He asked you again. You grumbled a bit and pushed yourself a little further up, resting against the pillows so you could look at Steve a little easier. It was like the two of you were sitting up having a conversation, but really it was your head gently resting against his shoulder, him watching you talk, and you looking at the ceiling.

“Before everything happened tonight, I was watching the people at the party. I couldn’t help myself, y’know?”

Steve nodded, and you nodded in response to him. “Well. . . I just started to notice how some people were interacting. I saw the way Tony and Pepper looked at one another, I saw the longing looks between Natasha and Dr. Banner-”

“You think something is going on between them?” Steve couldn’t help but ask and you chuckled a bit and looked at him.

“There’s something between them. I saw it.” You paused to let him interject but Steve motioned for you to continue. “Anyway, after seeing that, and after Ultron I haven’t been able to stop thinking about my last mission, about Paris.”

Steve remembered you briefly talking about Paris, how it was your favorite place. But you never told him, or anyone for that matter, what happened on that mission. You had grown very quiet, and Steve could feel you take a shaky breath.

“I never told you the truth about Paris,” you whispered, “because I can’t accept what happened. What I did. I was sent on an intel mission, that was true, but it turned into something more. Hydra believed that this man named Marcelle Olivier was developing a deadly neurochemical that would wipe out populations quicker than anything developed right now. It would have an immediate effect unlike mustard gas, while leaving no trace of it’s composition in victims.” You paused to look over at Steve who was still watching you speak. “If it was true, Hydra wanted it. Desperately. Marcelle was scheduled to be in Paris for something that they didn’t think I needed to know, and I was to interject and get the information . . . and I did.” You let out a little chuckled breath. “It took a few weeks, but Marcelle told me all about this neurochemical that would eat away at the brain of a person within two minutes. It was. . . Horrifying. The most awful thing someone could even come up with. But it’s what Hydra wanted, so I-I got it for them. But he found me out.

“One night I was supposed to meet him for dinner, but these men burst into my hotel room and I couldn’t react fast enough, or really even fight them all off. The next thing I knew I was in some ratty old building in an older part of the city, and he beat me. For hours.” You bit your lip a bit. “I missed my check-in that night, and I guess they had someone nearby to follow up and that’s when they saw the state of my room. I don’t know how they found me, but they did, not that I know  _ who  _ it was, only that three men were shot dead and it gave me a chance to get out of the restraints.

“I . . . I shot the last guard, and pointed the gun at Marcelle. He begged me not to pull the trigger. He had this look on his face and in his eyes besides fear . . .” you trailed off at the end and Steve watched as you rubbed your fingers together. “I never believed him until that moment that he loved me, or I guess, the idea of me. . . but I. . . I still killed him. I had to.”

At some point some tears had fallen from your eyes, but you rubbed them off your cheeks. “I started to think tonight about if anyone would be able to accept that part of me. Or look at me like how Tony looks at Pepper.”

Steve didn’t know what to say, but seeing you just casually lay next to him after revealing that didn’t feel right to him. He carefully brought his hand up that was closest to you and grabbed your hand in his, which made you look his way, and that’s when he saw the tears. “(Y/N). . . What you had to do for Hydra, it’s not you, this,” he paused to rub your hand with his thumb, “this is you. You’re working to accept your past, and that takes a lot of courage and strength. If someone can’t accept what you had to go through? Then they don’t deserve you.”

You watched as he stroked your hand with your thumb, and met his gaze when he finished his thought. The warm feeling that brewed in your chest was sudden, and you were partially afraid of what it meant. You suddenly felt like you were looking at Steve Rogers differently. Sure he had always been kind and friendly towards you, but his whispers in the night made you feel a tinge of something more. He could just be his normal friendly and supportive self, but something was telling you to move. So you did.

You were very  _ very  _ careful with how you moved beside him. He still held your hand, but you had lifted his arm a bit and moved yourself under it. Steve seemed to understand your motion, and when you released the fingers that were laced with yours his arm draped down your back. His hand rested carefully on your side and your head rested on his chest, one hand resting close to your chin flat on him and your other arm rested to his side like earlier in the day. 

Whatever was happening was uncharted waters for Steve Rogers. He wasn’t sure if you were seeing his comfort or if this was. . . more. A part of him was hopeful for it to be the latter, but another part of him was terrified about what that meant, and what this means. The silence that filled the air was comfortable, and this time he could feel your breathing against him even out in sleep, and he laid there for a while longer letting the night sink in.

Something told him he wouldn’t have these late night talks with you for some time. Or just that he may not see  _ you  _ for some time, not until Ultron was dealt with. So Steve did what Steve does best: he made sure he would remember this moment, and how you felt in his arms.

* * *

By the time you had woken up Steve was gone, the only remnant of last night you had was your memory and a scribble of a note Steve had left for you on the bedside table. How you managed to sleep through him leaving was beyond you, but you understood all the same. They were heroes after all. Still, you put the note away and tried to carry on with your day as if nothing was happening.

Tony left you a note too, but that was handed to you by one of the SHIELD agents when you found yourself sitting in his lab. Not having JARVIS around made the whole building feel eerie. The only comfort you could find for yourself was sitting amongst Tony’s work. That’s where they found you and kept a watchful eye over you as the day passed on. You kept looking over Tony’s letter about where they had gone off to, trying to make sense of the masses of paper strewn about.

There was something about a black market arms dealer he used to know that was an acquaintance of the man they busted just the day before. He said there was a chance they could stop Ultron right now, and he promised to be back soon. But you saw the documents left out, and for some reason the twist in your stomach told you otherwise. The arms dealer wasn’t a good man, and to top if off Ultron had two enhanced followers now. You may not be seeing them for quite some time.

And then someone burst in when the sun was getting low. You stood abruptly from the desk as two agents entered with a kick in their step like something had happened. It had all happened so fast, you had enough time to grab some necessities (clothes and the sort) along with both Tony and Steve’s letters before being ushered onto a quinjet. The agents who accompanied you sat on either side of you and you bumped shoulder to shoulder with them for maybe an hour. The flight pattern led you to believe you were being taken to the new compound - and you were right.

The big building was both a blessing and a curse. Blessing in the sense of a change of scenery, but a curse in the thought that something had happened to the team. To Tony. To Steve. You let these SHIELD agents lead you into the building before you reminded them of the fact you knew your way around. You felt oddly protective over the fact they were here with you, in a place you often reserved for time with Tony. This was a lot of his work, and yours recently, and it was odd that they felt it okay to propel you in like  _ you  _ were the one who needed to be locked away.

So that's how you found yourself here in the hub, at least that’s what you called it. It was the main sector of the building that Tony envisioned the Avengers and the team stationed here would use during mission briefings and interactions while in the field. Tony had it to where every quinjet the Avengers were on showed with a tracker on the map before you, and any news related to the team showed on the transparent screens as well. He was a visionary, your brother.

That’s how you saw what had happened in Africa. You watched the footage of the Hulk destroying a partially built building and Tony swooping in with large, equally sized armour to subdue him. It was awful to see, the look in the Hulk’s eyes were bloodshot, his veins popped from his body and it just was not like any other footage you had seen of Dr. Banner. But you stayed like this, sitting on a rather uncomfortable chair (you would talk to Tony about that at one point) and watched how the beacon of the craft they were on had stopped transmitting some point over the Atlantic.

You wished you could contact them with the million of questions running through your mind. Was everyone okay? Where were they going? Did Tony tell SHIELD to bring you here? How much has Ultron gotten his hands on? Is this how it felt to be on the other side? Just waiting for news to drop? You weren’t a particular fan if that was the case.

The hours dragged on but you stayed in your place to wait for news from them. Night passed and the sun rose like it always does, like it always would if things permitted. You squinted through the rays of sun and noticed the transmission had come back on, and reports from Seoul covered the once barren screen. You sat forward as your back cracked and reached out to move the articles around with your fingers, combing through each one to see the videos attached. Seeing some of them in action was. . . both fascinating yet bittersweet. Clint Barton, Natasha Romanoff, and Steve Rogers. You couldn’t help but linger on the footage of Steve, watching as he did everything in his power to fight off Ultron on the top of a moving truck. Ultron looked more menacing then the last time you had seen him, and that’s probably when it sunk in; the severity of the world you were now a part of.

The articles were dated from hours ago and you cursed the fact you had slept through this development. You stood from your spot and looked around the barren room tapping your fist into the palm of your hand gently as your mind reeled. You needed to know  _ more _ . That itch of a feeling you didn’t know if it was because you were a Stark, or if it was because you were a spy, but you sat back down and began to type away at the system in front of you.

Hacking SHIELD was easy enough, you had done it before under the guise of Hydra, and it seemed like second nature for you now. Seeing Ultron before you made you shake your head and swipe the image away, but you looked over the information of his latest whereabouts and froze over the attempts for nuclear codes. He really meant it when he said the word extinct. There was note of a hacker stopping the attempts and you figured maybe you could try finding out who that was. Maybe it was information that could be useful for them.

So you dug in deeper, forcing your way through protective walls and typing away on the keyboard to find what you were looking for. This was like riding a bike without training wheels for you (how morbid does that sound?), but you did it anyhow, not caring if you were going to be caught. Like clockwork Ultron attempted for the codes once more, and you watched the coding nearly fight back to push him out in a second's notice, and you grumbled a bit. The screen flashed in numbers and you raised your brow a bit.

You’ve seen this code before. You’ve seen it here while helping Tony integrate something into the hardware of this building.

You reached out for the screen before you and zoomed it out with your hand, and the sudden realization at the image before you made you stand for your chair and look at it in awe. There was no way. This was true.

The Avengers had made it back to the Tower with the cradle and Bruce and Tony had begun work on undoing Ultron and Dr. Cho’s work on the body in it. That’s when his screen beeped and it startled not only him, but Bruce as well.

“What was that?” Bruce asked, and Tony moved from his spot next to the cradle, to the screen, doing something to it to find that noise.

“I don’t know actually, this is a closed-”

The message that appeared made him stop his sentence, seeing the words before him and he fought the smile on his face. He took out his phone-like device and turned back to Bruce.

“What is it?” Bruce asked, and Tony looked at the cradle.

“You have to trust me,” he said to his friend, who only shook their head in response.

“Kinda don’t,” Bruce admitted.

“ Our ally? The guy protecting the military's nuclear codes? She found him.” With the flick of his wrist a form envelops the room, and Bruce takes his glasses off.

“Hello, Dr. Banner,” JARVIS greets.

Bruce motioned with his glasses between JARVIS’ consciousness and Tony. “Who found him?”

Tony smiled wide, “My sister,” he said, and walked back over to the cradle, “Ultron didn't go after JARVIS cause he was angry. He attacked him because he was scared of what he can do. So JARVIS went underground. Okay? Scattered, dumped his memory. But not his protocols. He didn't even know he was in there.” Tony paused to tap on the cradle. “Not until she pieced it together.”

Bruce nodded as he spoke, and looked down at the mass before them. “So you want me to help you put JARVIS into this thing?”

“No,” Tony shook his head, “ _ I _ want to help  _ you  _ put JARVIS into this thing.”

When Bruce looked at him in disbelief Tony sighed. “C’mon I’m way out of my league here. You know bio-organics better than anyone.”

“And you just assume that JARVIS' operational matrix can beat Ultron's?” Bruce asked, earning a nod from Tony.

“JARVIS has been beating him from inside without knowing it. This is the opportunity, we can create Ultron's perfect self, without the homicidal glitches he thinks are his winning personality. We have to.”

Tony was trying his best to reason with his friend, and still Bruce looked in disbelief, but then JARVIS spoke, “I believe it’s worth a shot.

So Bruce grumbled a bit but he knew it was their best bet against Ultron right now. So he and Tony truly became mad scientists that day. And worked on this synthetic body for JARVIS’ consciousness to “plug” into.

You had paced back and forth in the room since you never heard back from Tony after your encrypted message to him. Had he gotten it? If he did, what was he going to use the information for?  _ Why  _ is he such a bad replier?

You stopped rambling when there was a familiar beep sound from the computer, and you hurried over to it and nearly skidded across the floor in the chair. There were only two words on it, but it was enough to make you feel at ease.

_ Thank you _ .

You relaxed your back into the chair and smiled to yourself. Look at you, helping your brother and maybe the world. Is this what Steve meant by doing good with what you have? It was. . . oddly satisfying. You stood from the chair when the screen before you yielded an error code, in all capital letters that read:  **ACCESS DENIED** .

Uh oh. Someone had found you out. You tried to disconnect your connection but instead a face appeared before you and you jumped back, taking in the man before you.

“Do you have any idea what you’re-” He had started to say but stopped when he took your appearance in. He knew you. Did you know him?

“Miss Stark,” he acknowledged. Well that certainly answered your suspicion.

“Who are you?” You asked, only to then notice the little flag pinned to his jacket. 

“My name is Phil Coulson, I’m the Director of SHIELD,” he said and you nodded in understanding. “Why were you hacking into our database?”

“I was trying to get some kind of information on what’s going on with my brother, since your Agents didn’t bother to fill me in on anything,” you replied honestly and crossed your arms. “You should get a better vetting system. I haven’t seen them since we got here.”

You swore you could see him fighting a smile, but he sighed in disappointment. “I didn’t think you would be as much of an issue as your brother,” he commented and you could see him lean against his desk and cross his arms. “I’ve been informed by someone on the team that Tony and Bruce have created a human symbiote with the JARVIS consciousness you provided them.”

“I’m sorry, they did what?” You asked, as if you needed clarification. But really it was more around the lines of  _ what the fuck _ ?

Coulson nodded. “They’re in Sokovia now.” He pointed to the map and you did in fact see two little dots on the move; a Quinjet, and the other marked as a MK-suit. The articles that were popping up now showed what you assumed to be the city lifting into the air.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to figure out how to get thousands of people off that rock.” You looked at the little tablet on the table while Coulson moved to disconnect your connection, but you lunged forward to it.

“Wait,” you said out loud and Coulson stopped behind his desk while you skimmed through some of the files you had from earlier and spread out an image between the two of you. “Do you have any more of these laying around?”

Coulson looked from the image to you, and you saw a smile spread over his face. “I think I know where to find one.” He nodded at you while grabbing what looked to be a phone. “Suit up.”

* * *

They were arguing. Of all the times to be arguing, this was definitely not the place to be doing it. There were only two options Tony was sure of, and Steve didn’t like either of them.

“Not 'til everyone's safe,” Steve told Natasha, who breathed heavily next to him. Natasha shook her head.

“Everyone up here versus everyone down there? There's no math there, Rogers,” she told him and it was Steve’s turn to shake his head.

“I'm not leaving this rock with one civilian on it,” he said. Natasha gave him a soft smile and put a hand on his shoulder and looked out to the horizon.

“I didn't say we should leave.” She looked at Steve who watched her talk. “There's worse ways to go. Where else am I gonna get a view like this?”

“Glad you like the view, Romanoff. It's about to get better,” Nick Fury’s voice rang in their earpieces. Natasha and Steve looked at one another and then back to the horizon when a Helicarrier came into view like a gift from God. Nick Fury sure was a sucker for theatrics.

“Nice, right? I pulled her out of mothballs with a couple of old friends. She's dusty, but she'll do,” he commented and Steve let out a sigh.

“Fury, you son of a bitch,” he commented.

“Oooh! You kiss your mother with that mouth?” Fury asked in a joking matter, which only made Steve shake his head and Natasha chuckle.

“Altitude is eighteen thousand and climbing,” Maria Hill spoke to the crew inside, and gave a nod to one of the other agents.

Steve and Natasha watched as the lifeboats detached from the Helicarrier and began to move towards the rising city, and Pietro suddenly appeared at their side, and watched in awe.

“This is SHIELD?” He asked the two, and Steve nodded towards the kid.

“This is what SHIELD is supposed to be,” he told him, and the lifeboats touched the ground before them and a number of agents disembarked from the crafts, but Steve froze when he saw one in particular. He couldn’t believe the sight before him.

You were dressed in a similar manner to Natasha, or Hill if he could recall, a SHIELD insignia stamped onto the leather jacket you were sporting. You had hopped down to the ground and were helping people climb onto the lifeboat like there was no care in the world around you. But you were searching for something and your gaze landed on him, and even from a distance he could see the smile that spread on your lips.

“Let’s load ‘em up,” he said to Nat and Pietro, but he was already moving towards you. You grabbed people by the hand and helped them onboard when he finally made it to you and strapped his shield to his back, but seemed to have lost the words he wanted to say.

“You’ll catch a fly in your mouth if you keep it open like that,” you commented to him, and it made him smile. So he stood beside you and you both directed people onto the lifeboat until it was full.

It was working. The lifeboats were filling up one by one and being sent back to the Helicarrier as Rhodey and Tony both fought to keep the robots from swarming in the air. The amount of people (and lifeboats) left was dwindling, and you were working one by one with each lifeboat to the very end. And Steve stood by your side through it all.

“Avengers,” Tony’s voice said through the earpieces, and you could even hear it in yours. “Time to work for a living.”

You looked at Steve who was staring at you, so you nodded behind him. “Go.”

Steve hesitated but soon enough he dashed off and your eyes followed him until he disappeared around a corner. Your attention went back to the people still trying to board, and you grasped some hands as they clambered on board.

It was all invigorating, or it could have been from the air getting so thin from the altitude. Either way, your chest was filled with something other than grief and emptiness for the first time in who knew how long. You were making a difference. And SHIELD, Coulson, Fury (who he was you were still unsure), they were listening to you.

There was one lifeboat left, and as the last few were starting to board you saw the team come from the direction Steve had run off in minutes ago. Clint, Thor, Natasha, the Hulk, and then Steve. They had rushed over and helped the last of the civilians onto the lifeboat and Thor looked over to you and motioned to you with his hammer.

“The look suits you,” he commented. You smiled at him.

“Thanks,” you replied.

Steve had returned to your side and looked around him. “Is this the last of them?”

You nodded. “Everyone else is on the carrier.”

Steve nodded his head as he squinted around and offered you his hand. You glanced at the glove but placed your hand in his, and he helped you climb aboard the final lifeboat and then hoisted himself up as well. He was standing fairly close when suddenly the Quinjet appeared from the edge of the floating island and the people around you began to scream. Steve quickly wrapped you in his arms and almost reached for his shield when the Hulk leapt into the air and onto the quinjet, his weight throwing off the balance and sending it lopsiding into the city. Steve carefully unwrapped you from his arms and you looked past him at the city, and noticed a body on the ground. Steve’s eyes followed yours and you saw his shoulders slump. Clint appeared from behind a car and held a child, and you frowned. You weren’t sure who laid on the ground, but they knew him, and he had sacrificed himself for everyone on this lifeboat.

The lifeboat joulted and started back towards the helicarrier once Clint was back on board, holding the body of the man who had saved him. There was an eerie silence amongst the crowd, watching as Clint kneeled beside the man and stared in disbelief. You didn’t know when, but at some point you had reached for Steve’s hand and wrapped your fingers with his.

There was a crack of thunder, and everyone’s attention turned to the city. It was like a spark of light ignited the sky in front of you, and it enveloped Sokovia as the lifeboat made it back to the helicarrier. You watched in awe, and then heard Tony’s voice in your ear as people began to disembark the boat.

“Ultron is down.”

* * *

It’s been several weeks since then.

The Compound was bustling with life now. Tony and Maria Hill handpicked a specialized team to help with the everyday routines that would happen on site, and he called it the Avengers Special Service Evaluation Team. He likes the abbreviation  **ASSET** , though you had to nearly harass him to include the E and the T to his original idea. He told you it wasn’t as funny, and you told him you refused to be referred to as  **ASS** on a day to day basis with him. So he caved, and you won that argument.

You had decided after the events with Ultron to take Coulson and Fury up on their offer to become a specialized SHIELD agent, on the condition that you would be stationed here as part of this team. Not only did it give you a chance to keep an eye on Tony (god knows he needs that), but it also was a steady enough environment for you to be in charge of. Answering to Tony and Steve, of course.

Today, Thor was leaving and so was Tony to return to the Tower in New York to undergo some kind of preparations. He told you that you didn’t need to worry about that, though a part of you still did. That left Natasha, Wanda, Sam, Vision, Rhodey, and Steve here in the meantime. They were probably just headed for training if the time was correct-

“(Y/N),” a voice called for you. You stopped in your tracks to look up and see Steve headed your way. He was dressed in his Captain America suit and you couldn’t help the smile that crossed your face, and pressed the tablet you were holding against your chest.

“I swear I see you in that all the time,” you commented and Steve smiled and cast a glance down his frame.

“Well how about you saw me in something different,” he said and you raised a brow but before you could answer he continued. “Dinner? Tonight?”

You blinked at him and bit your lip a bit as you went over his words in your mind, “Like. . . a date?”

“Like a date,” he answered.

You couldn’t stop the smile from spreading over your lips as you shuffled the weight between your legs, and nodded at him. “Yes. I’d like that.”

Steve smiled at you and nodded, and you both backed away from one another. You turned from him and he turned from you, neither being able to wipe the smiles from their faces for the rest of the day.


	7. Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SMUT WARNING. we jump a bit to civil war, so we get to see some cute flashbacks between Steve and the reader

Working with the Avengers for nearly a year makes you see that actions and consequences aren’t always black and white. There’s a messy middle that’s a grey colour that you have to very carefully navigate through, or else face the wrath of either Director Coulson, or (even worse) the federal government agencies. If you could do everything in your power to avoid the latter no matter the costs, you would do so in a heartbeat. No questions asked. So when things went sideways, you absolutely dreaded the aftershock you knew would come sooner or later. That dread filled you today.

The images that filtered over the screens were not good. Not good at all. Rubble, dust, fire, crying civilians. It was not how this mission was supposed to go down. What happened out there? You were entranced in the up to date news that you didn’t realize there were eyes watching you, waiting for orders. It wasn’t until your phone buzzed were you knocked from your trance, and looked around the room.

“Get the Stark Relief Foundation out there, now,” you said. Some agents turned in their chairs and began to type away. “Any ETA on our team?”

“Tracking shows 5 minutes out,” someone replied, and you gave a short nod.

Lagos was supposed to be an easy mission. The team was sent to apprehend a still operational Hydra taskforce that was after a biological weapon, but it quickly turned into a deadly attack on innocents. Not that your people were at fault, but you saw the footage. Something made Steve hesitate, but what was it? You thanked your stars that Wanda was there to encapsulate the blast. . But it didn’t change the fact people died. On your watches at that.

“Quinjet is inbound,” another agent called out. You looked up from the shoulder you were hovering over to see the incoming aircraft. The familiar wings started to shift upwards and it moved over the building and out of sight. 

“Marquez, you contact me if there’s any changes,” you instructed, removing your ear piece and placing it on your personal terminal. Without waiting for an answer you were out of the HUB, and on your way towards the landing pad.

You didn’t know if you were rushing or not. You probably were given how loud you felt you could hear your steps echo in the hallways. You rounded the corner that led down to the large glass doors, but the team was nowhere in sight. Maybe you weren’t as fast as you thought. Your movements were halted when a hand grabbed your wrist and pulled you into one of the empty side hallways.

Steve Rogers engulfed you in his arms like he hadn’t seen you in weeks. Granted it was only a few days, but his grip around your felt like it had been longer than that. He had to bend down to fully embrace you around your body, and you easily wrapped your arms around his neck. You felt like he had scooped you up with intentions of never letting you go.

Your fingers laced into his messy hair from wearing that damn cowl, and you let him run his hands over your back. Anything to let him know that you were real, you were there. Steve shifted against you and pulled away ever so slightly to bring one of his hands to your cheek, and slowly caught your lips in his.

Kissing Steve Rogers was always butterfly inducing, and always filled with something different. Sometimes it was need, or care, the first time it was cautionary, but this time it was love. The fingers in his hair relaxed to rub the back of his neck as his lips moved against yours in slow admiration. Steve needed to savour the moment, and god you let him. You let him push you against the wall of the hidden hallway, you let him dig his hand into your wait, you let him devour you.

When Steve finally broke away from you he still kept you close, his tub rubbed your cupped cheek and watched as your eyes fluttered open to meet his gaze. Even in the shadows and the tiniest hint of light from the main corridor, you were beautiful. Real. His. You gently dragged your nails over the nape of his neck and Steve closed his eyes as the sensation.

“Steve,” you whispered. “What happened out there?”

His eyes opened again, and they looked darker than normal. “How many did we lose?”

You hesitated, but when he didn’t let up his heavy gaze you sighed. “Twenty six people. Eleven of those were relief aid workers from Wakanda.”

“Rumlow got in my head,” Steve explained. “I should’ve seen that vest before it escalated.”

“Do you remember what you told me once,” you asked him. Steve shook his head and you trailed your hand from the back of his neck to his cheek, and he leaned into your touch. “When you were trying to enlist, what Dr. Erskine said to you? That you have to stay true to who you are. Not a perfect soldier, but a good man.”

Your free hand went to his chest, and you held your hand right over his beating heart. “This heart you carry is heavy in the best ways possible. The way you care about people, the world, everyone around you. . You’re a  _ good  _ man, Steve Rogers. We’ll get through this. Together.”

Steve's hand retreated from your waist and grabbed hold of the hand on his chest, and brought your hand up and placed a kiss on your fingers. “Together.”

You nodded at his whisper and weaved yourself around him, and Steve let you lead the way from the dark and hidden hallway into the open. His hand never left yours as you walked through the compound to your quarters, even despite the looks people gave as you passed them. Steve Rogers didn’t care who saw his fingers laced tightly with yours. All he needed right now was you, and only you.

_The first few times Steve and you had “official” dates, something seemed to go wrong. Whether that was something wrong with a reservation, the accidental crushed up flowers he’d hand you, or unexplainable weather delays - something happened every single time._ _And Steve was completely mortified every time something happened. But you couldn’t help but find it hilarious._

_ Your fifth date was no exception. The date started off great, there was absolutely no hitch in his plans and Steve was ecstatic. The flowers he gave you were sweetly fragrant and completely unscathed, dinner went well with no hiccups, and not a drop of rain on your way out of the restaurant. Everything was fine until you got back to the compound, that’s when the rain started to pour. Steve ever the gentleman gave you his jacket to cover your head as you both raced to the thick clear sliding doors, and he swiped his card for them to open. _

_ Nothing. _

_ Steve squinted through the downpour and swiped his card again, but the panel only blinked red at his attempt, and you fought the smirk that so desperately wanted to form on your face. He didn’t turn to face you even when he was denied a third, fourth, and fifth time. And you finally smiled to yourself at his frustrated composure. _

_ “You gotta be shitting me,” he muttered to himself, but you heard every word. _

_ “Language,” you warned playfully. Steve turned back to face you and took in your equally soaked appearance. You had lowered his jacket from covering you, because there was no point to it now. You were officially locked out. He shook his head and glanced down at his feet. _

_ “I’m so sorry,” he said. “Every time I try and take you out, something happens.” _

_ “Steve, it’s fine,” you tried to reassure him, and grabbed onto one of his hands. “I have a great time, every time.” _

_ Steve looked up to meet your eyes, rain trickled down from the sky and ran down your faces. You carefully brought another hand to his cheek and leaned upwards pressing a soft kiss to his wet cheek. Steve caught onto your waist and held you there, and you looked at him in shock. Even with the rain and thunder in the background, Steve held you there against him with a look you had never seen from him. His eyes flickered from your gaze to your lips - and he slowly leaned down to catch your lips in his. _

Steve Rogers was a complicated man, but you seemed to understand him fairly well. You started to be able to read his eyes, the way he stood, how his hands moved, even the flicker of his eyes. It could have been in part to your training that long ago with Hydra, or maybe it has come from the amount of time you’ve taken to study his features in your alone time. That was how in this moment you knew he needed you to whisk him away to the place you often shared with him (okay more like any chance you could get).

When the door shut and you two were finally concealed from eyes, the world, and everything in it. You took great care in Steve. You had to rid him of the day, of being Captain America, and let him be Steve. Your Steve. You helped him undress, sliding off the utility straps that hugged his broad shoulders and setting it down on the bench at the foot of the bed. You then worked on the belt that hugged his hips, unclipping it and setting it down with the shoulder straps. Steve watched as you dragged your hand across his chest and circled to his back, and trailed it up to the nape of his neck once more to grab hold of the zipper. He felt you drag it down his back, the fabric loosening off his body and he sighed in comfort.

You often did this after he would get back from a mission, whether it went sideways or not. Steve reveled in the feeling of you taking care of him, but of course not as much as he adored taking care of you. You pushed the fabric down his arms and circled back to face him to pull it completely off his torso, a small smile on your lips. When the fabric cleared his wrists and his hands were free of the top part of his suit, he caught your hands suddenly. You looked up to meet his eyes and raised your brow a bit at him, and Steve rubbed his hands up your arm gingerly.

_ It was however many months in (they started to blend together after the 4 month mark post Ultron) when a familiar trace came in from your overseas intelligence. You had to look it over six, seven, eight times before that gut wrenching feeling overcame you. It couldn’t have been true, but god damn it it was all the same. Every detail, every number, the trace on it was the same down to the last chemical notation.  _

_ Trizinade. _

_ The day you were set to brief the team you paced the meeting room. You had gotten there early (even earlier than Steve) to wallow in your fears, your anxiety. You kept muttering to yourself that you could do this! You could tell them, tell Steve even! But it didn’t seem to change the heart that beat rapidly in your chest. Even when the door opened and you were pulled from your wretched thought, and turned to meet Steve and Natasha, in the middle of a conversation. _

_ “I think Wanda would benefit from field work, Steve,” Natasha was saying and you busied yourself with shuffling some papers around from where you stood. “She won’t get better unless she’s in the field.” _

_ “I just don’t think she’s ready, Nat,” he answered her honestly. “Or Vision for that matter.” _

_ When their eyes landed on you, immediately they could tell something was wrong. Your downcast eyes, the lack of a smile their way, and Steve noticed the slight tremble in your hands as you just worked to avoid them. He glanced sideways at Natasha, who waved him away and went to find her place amongst the oak table. Steve looked back at you, and slowly walked his way over until he stood by your side, and his hand gently caressed the curve of your back. _

_ “What’s going on?” Steve asked, and you suddenly stopped your movements. You looked over at him and gave a light shake of your head. _

_ “I’ll brief you when the rest of the team gets here.” _

_ As if on cue, the door was pushed open again and in walked the missing trio - Sam, Wanda, and Vision. You broke your look from Steve and went to work on the folders before you and slipped from his side. Steve straightened his posture as you moved around him, placing folders down on the table and finally brought himself to sit at a seat at the head of the table. He flicked open the folder, and skimmed over the first page of documents in it. _

_ “We’ve gotten word from intelligence in Europe about the occurrence of what looks to be biochemical warfare in France,” you paused when you met Steve’s stoney gaze before speaking again. “More specifically, there’s traces of a neurochemical that’s killed eight people that we know of, all linked to the same company-” _

_ You took a moment to press a button on a remote, and a holographic image displayed before the team. “Each casualty had previously worked for Olivibreum in France.” _

_ The name and France made Steve’s eyes hoot up to meet yours, and he had a knowing look on his face. No, it couldn’t have been the case. Could it. Natasha sat on his right side and leaned forward to rest her arms on the table. _

_ “It says that there’s no trace left behind of the substance, how do we know it’s a neurochemical?” _

_ You hesitated, and everyone looked up at your painfully obvious uncomfortable nature. Even if your eyes tried so hard not to show anything in them, they told a story crystal clear. You were scared. _

_ “Because Hydra came in contact with this signature a little over a year ago,” you stated and Steve swallowed the lump in his throat. “And I got it for them, and SHIELD seized it when Hydra was taken out for good. They’ve been keeping a track on this chemical format for a while now, in case it ever popped back up. And now it has.” _

_ That day you needed Steve in ways you hadn’t needed him in months. You practically vanished when the meeting ended and he found you in your room, pacing back and forth. He had let himself in and when the door locked shut behind him you started to speak frantically. _

_ “I thought I destroyed any chance of this happening,” you began. “Eight people are  _ **_dead_ ** _ because of-” _

_ “Don’t say that,” Steve begged you, and he caught a hold of your shoulders. “Don’t you dare say it’s your fault. It’s not. If anyone secretly had access to it, that is not your fault. The only thing we can do is stop them now, together.” _

_ You nodded and Steve gently cupped your cheek in his hand. Your eyes fluttered shut at the feeling of his fingers grazing your hair and Steve smiled at the sight. He lived for these moments, the calm before the storm. He couldn’t help himself from stepping closer and lowering himself down to you, and you eagerly closed the space with your lips. _

_ Your arms wrapped around his waist as you fit yourself closer to him. As soon as your body touched his Steve pulled away and you shook your head. _

_ “I’m sorry,” you mumbled and unlaced your arms from him. But Steve put his hand on your waist and he rubbed his thumb over your cheek. _

_ “I didn’t mean to pull away I, uh-” he trailed off and you tilted your head a bit into his palm. “I don’t ever mean to pull away. But. I just-” _

_ “Steve,” you cut him off and he sighed a bit against you. “It’s okay, you don’t- we don’t--” _

_ “That’s the thing,” he cut you off this time and you blinked at him. Steve cleared his throat and nodded at you. “It’s not that I  _ **_don’t_ ** _ want to, but. . . It’s. . . It’s been awhile.” _

_ You raised a brow at him and couldn’t help but smile. “That, uh, that would make two of us.” _

_ Steve had a sudden look of realization on his face and you couldn’t help the giggle that escaped you. “Right. That would be. . Right, yes. I-” _

_ “Steve,” you said and Steve let out a quiet hmm. “Like I said we. . We don’t have to do anything-” _

_ Steve quieted you by catching your lips with his, but it was different than your normal kisses. It felt heavy with passion, and everything that came with it. Want and need swirled into you when you felt his tongue lap against yours and you couldn’t help the smile that spread over you. Steve had slowly edged you backwards, hand still on your hip and the other on your cheek until you felt your knees hit the bed and he gently pulled away. _

_ “You can stop me,” he whispered. Steve looked over your face and gently ran the back of his fingers down until his thumb hit your chin. “At any time, you can stop me. This.” _

_ “I don’t want to stop,” you told him. Steve looked you over once more before he nodded his head and lowered himself back down against your lips. _

Steve moved your hair over your shoulder and placed kisses to the bare skin. His hands trailed back down your naked spine, over your curves and dips, until his fingers could grasp onto your hips. Your head falls back as he trailed kisses down your chest, and you roll your hips against him.

Steve groaned at the sensation of your walls constricting around his throbbing cock. The warmth of your juices swirling around him was intoxicating to say the least, and he couldn’t help but push you against him firmer, meeting your hips in a perfect rhythm. One of your hands found itself laced in his hair, the other used his shoulder to steady yourself, and he could feel your nails scratching against his skin.

“Steve,” you whispered, and kept rolling your hips against him. He looked up to meet your gaze and kissed you deeply. The moan that escaped you filled him up and he pressed into you at a new angle. You gasped against his lips, and Steve felt you start to move faster against him.

“There,” you breathed, and pulled away from his lips once more to throw your head back again. You were unraveling over him and he could feel your juices seep messily over his legs. With another groan, he helped you mover harder over him, in and out in perfect motions and listened to your beautiful gasps in the air.

You suddenly tightened around him and Steve knew you were about to come undone. He brought your torso closer to his, your sensitive buds rubbed against his chest and his hand smacked your ass and gripped it firmly. You whimpered, your movements stayed the same until you hit your high. Steve groaned when your fingers tugged on his hair, and you squeezed yourself around him. He could feel the shakes in your legs and your exasperated gasps as you rode him slowly when he could feel himself about to cum.

“Fuck,” he mumbled, his hand still holding onto your ass worked you a little harder against him, each stroke deep and sensual. The hand he had on your back rubbed your hot skin when you felt him twitch inside you. The warmth that erupted from him made you stroke the back of his neck as he breathed into your neck. Steve held you there as he came down from his high, and gently placed kisses over your soft skin. Your chests heaved with one another, his hand glided over your back, and you felt nothing but pure bliss in that moment.

You smiled as he kissed your neck, then your chin, and his hand trailed up your back to cup your cheek once more. Steve directed your gaze to him, and stroked your warm skin with his thumb.

“You’re too good for me,” he muttered as he looked you over. You giggled a bit and pressed a quick kiss on his lips.

“Don’t say that, Rogers,” you chided. Steve couldn’t help the chuckle and smile that spread over his face. But then it fell almost as quickly as it appeared, and you soften your gaze at him. “What is it? Did I say-”

“I love you,” Steve said in an all too serious tone. You look him over and Steve shakes his head and averts his gaze. “This. . This definitely was not the time to say that-”

“You’re still in me,” you comment and Steve all but sighs. Though he doesn’t notice the smile that has bloomed over your face.

“Right, I’m still in you-”

You cut him off by placing your hand on his cheek and made him look at you this time. Your other hand came up to his other cheek and you cupped his face in your hands. His eyes looked sad, his lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but he was all too entranced with you.

“I love you too, Steve,” you said back to him. Steve blinked a few times as he took your admission in, and you placed a quick kiss to his lips. “I truly do.”

Steve broke out in a smile and rubbed your skin any way he could, as if to see this was real. You laughed a bit at his movements and then he paused, realizing that he was (in fact) still in you, and more than likely you both needed a shower. So Steve took the matter into his own hands and held onto you while he scooted over to the edge. You wrapped your arms around his neck as he stood, and whisked you away for a very hot and steamy shower. Where Steve would take care of you once again.

* * *

Now hours later, once Steve had managed to tire himself and you out, you laid with him in the bed you actively had made love in just earlier. He laid flat on his back, you cuddled into his side, and his arm traced up and down your back. You weren’t sure how long you had stayed like this, but you never wanted it to end. Your peace often came from laying with Steve like this, and you weren’t complaining at all.

“I have a question for you,” he said, and you shifted against him so you could meet his eyes. “All hypothetical, of course.”

You chuckled and rested your chin on the hand that laid on his bare chest. “What’s your hypothetical question, Steve?”

Steve smiled, and he averted his gaze up to the ceiling. “What if we got away from all this,” he started to say and gave your shoulder a light squeeze. “Even if just for a little bit? Where. . . I don’t have to be Captain America? Where you don’t have to be the head of ASSET? Just. . . You and me. Steve and (Y/N).”

Steve finally looked down to meet your gaze and you just watched him talk. His eyes softened at your gaze and you leaned up to kiss him passionately. His hand went from your shoulder to the curve of your back and he pressed you closer to his side as he savoured the moment - before it all halted when your phone began to ring. You sighed against him before pulling away.

“That’s Tony,” you mumbled as you remove yourself from his side to roll over. Steve’s opposite hand moved to your waist so he could keep some kind of contact with you as he watched your back.

“Tony has his own distinct ringtone?” Steve asked you and you grabbed the phone from the bedside table on your side, and tossed him a look over your shoulder.

“Have a special one for you too, Rogers,” you said with a wink and then answered your phone, and held it up to your ear.

“Hi Tony,” you said sweetly. On the other end Tony kept his eyes focused on the road before him but shook his head at your demeanor.

“I don’t want to know why you’re all lovey dovey, do I?” He asked over the speaker. Though Tony couldn’t see you, you shook your head on your end.

“Nope,” you said with a little emphasis on the p.

“Gross,” he mumbled and you smiled to yourself. “Listen, this is important, I wanted to give you a heads up before he got there.”

You said up from your spot on the bed, and Steve followed your lead, his hand rested on your leg as he watched you speak. “Before who got here?”

Tony blinked before his, and let out a sigh. “Thadeus Ross.”

You narrowed your eyes on a spot on the covers, still avoiding Steve’s eyes. “Why is he coming here, Tony.”

“Listen things. . . Things are changing. I can’t really give too much details, not yet anyway, but I just. . I wanted to let you know what’s coming your way.” Tony said. You nodded to yourself and sighed.

“How much of a heads up is this giving me?”

“Maybe. . Fifteen minutes? I’m twenty away.” He replied. You nodded again and then finally looked over your shoulder at Steve.

“Thanks, Tony,” you whispered, and with a click of a button the call was ended. You turned back to Steve, who looked at you in confusion. You gave him a small smile and leaned back towards his and cupped his cheek and kissed him tenderly. Steve held your elbow as you kissed him before you pulled away once again.

“It’s time to go back to work, Steve,” you told him sadly. Steve’s face fell and he rubbed your arm as he searched your eyes for an answer.

“Who is coming?” He asked and you sighed.

“Secretary of State, Thadeus Ross,” you answer him, and Steve’s hand fell from your elbow.

That was not good.

You had barely managed to change into something appropriate, and Steve changed into a dark long-sleeved shirt and khakis. He had parted your side in an attempt to wrangle up the rest of the team, while you waited eagerly at the doors that separate you from the landing pad. Seeing the military grade helicopter swirl the surrounding grass and see the older man you had come to encounter on a small handful of occasions step out made the twist in your stomach worse. But you kept a cool head, and offered a fake smile to him.

“Mr. Secretary,” you greeted and he strolled up to you. “I’m sure your visit could’ve been done over the phone.”

It was a bit snarky, but you couldn’t help it. Having him enter your environment unannounced was unsettling. He was just unsettling. Ross stopped before you and looked you over with a stone cold gaze.

“Stark,” he said, or you felt nearly spat out. To be honest the encounters you had had with him weren't. . They weren’t the best. “I’m here on behalf of the United Nations, if you could assemble the team for a meeting-” he trailed off as he was about to pass you, but paused. “-And if you could get me a coffee, that would be great”

Ross started his way towards the main briefing room and you stood there for a moment and scoffed. What an asshole. With a roll of your eyes you marched after him, nearly having to jog to catch up to his side. His security detail let you pass, and you quickly typed a message to Steve. You held the phone in your palm as you finally got to Ross’ side and matched his stride.

“With all due respect, Mr. Secretary,” you nearly spat out his title. As you neared the briefing room you were a bit surprised to see everyone already there waiting, including Tony and Rhodey. “But you’re arriving unannounced to  _ my  _ facility, and requesting  _ my  _ team - I deserve to know what’s going on-”

“Need I remind you, Ms. Stark,” he said and whipped around to face you. The Avengers who sat at the table all watched with stoney gazes, with the exception of Steve and Tony. Steve watched with a hand over his mouth and a glare in his eyes, and Tony had his hand over his eyes. You froze in your spot and narrowed your glare at Ross. “This facility runs under SHIELD protocols, and therefore the Avengers follow SHIELD guidelines. Not yours. This meeting is for Avengers only, and as I recall?. . . You’re no Avenger.”

You felt your fist tighten at your side as you glared at the Secretary of State. When he turned away from you you finally broke your stare, and turned to the door. Your eyes skimmed over the uncomfortable looks of your friends, then over Tony who only offered a sad look, and then Steve - who looked pissed off. You blink a couple times his way and finally leave the room.

You were pissed, and both Tony and Steve knew it.

You stomped your way towards the HUB with one thought. If Ross didn’t want to let you into this meeting because “you’re no Avenger,” then fine. You had other ways of seeing what was going on inside that room.


	8. You'll Be the Death of Me Stark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eek ok so hear me out. the further we get into civil war the more... serious things get jwornonpaernbohgsrnio any who, pls enjoy :)

There was a lot you could say about Thaddeus Ross. You could say he never cared about anything other than covering his own ass. You could say that he didn’t really care about the safety of the world, in fact he only cared about the safety of himself and his career. Again - just looking out for himself. All your thoughts were just that Thaddeus Ross believed himself to be a God-fearing saviour, but his actions showed otherwise. You believed he thought he was doing good, but sometimes you just wondered what went on in the minds of others.

You were no Avenger. He was damn right about that. But to come in here like he owned the place and it wasn’t a Stark provided facility was beyond you. A true power trip. And it really fucking bugged you to walk out of that room with everyone’s eyes on you like they felt sorry for you. You didn’t like it when people looked at you like that, like you were just found huddled on that dirty floor of that old Hydra base. So when you burst into the HUB and the people on the floor turned in their chairs to look at you in confusion and worry, you felt the wind get knocked out of you.

“I need the room,” you told them. They casted careful glances amongst themselves and you motioned back towards the door. “You’re all dismissed for the day. Go ahead.”

They finally started to stand, some grabbed their jackets on the way out and others tossed you curious glances as they passed. You had your arms crossed until the room was emptied, before you made your way over to a seat on the main command terminal, and swiveled in it until you could type away on it.

“FRIDAY, lock down the room please,” you asked while you worked to pull up the feed for that meeting room.

“Of course,” she replied. You heard a small click and knew the doors were locked, and no one would be coming in unless they had the clearance to. You clicked on the active line that fed into that room and it pulled up in front of you in the air, projected seamlessly courtesy of Tony himself.

The scene before you showed Secretary Ross setting a thick book down on the table beside Wanda, who looked it over in contempt. He paced around the table, hands in his pocket, and the Avengers began to pass it around among them.

“The Sokovia Accords. Approved by 117 countries . . . it states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, only when and if that panel deems it necessary.”

Steve sat at the head of the table. He leaned against the table with his arms folded, but even on this feed you could see the resentment that was now in his eyes. You watched as he leaned back in his chair, and moved to cross his arms. “The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place. I feel we’ve done that.”

Ross stopped moving and looked across the table at Steve and offered a smile, but it radiated something other than niceness. “Tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?”

Steve had met his gaze but when he didn’t offer a response, Ross nodded to himself, and continued his pace around the table. “If I misplaced a couple of 30 megaton nukes. . . you can bet there’d be consequences. Compromise. Reassurance. That’s how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground.”

“So there are contingencies,” Rhodey stated. Ross stopped moving once again once he got to the head of the table, opposite of Steve.

“Three days from now, the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords,” he said. You sat back in your chair and sighed to yourself. Steve glanced Tony’s way, who avoided all eye contact with all of them. Ross sat himself down in the chair and nodded at the group of Avengers. “Talk it over.”

“And if we come to a decision you don’t like?” Natasha asked. Ross had the book of the Accords in front of him, and he gave her another one of his not-so-nice smiles.

“Then you retire.”

You shut the feed off almost immediately after the statement. You couldn’t help the conflict that preceded in your mind at what was transpiring here. You slapped your hand on the console as you stood from your seat and walked back to the doors, which unclicked for you as you approached. Just as you pulled it open, and an agent shifted beside the wall. They must have been waiting for you.

“What can I do for you,” you asked as you started back down the hallway. The agent strode beside you and cleared their throat.

“S-Secretary Ross requested your presence-”

Their sentence made you stop, and they nearly knocked into your back. You turned slowly to face them, and the agent just stared up at you in wonder. You closed your eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.

“I’m gonna kill Tony,” you mumbled before opening your eyes again. The agent gave you a sympathetic smile and you nodded. “Thanks for telling me.”

You dragged your feet back to the meeting room. Once you arrived it was empty besides Ross and a few of his own men. You pushed open the glass doors and he averted his attention to you, and you neared the table where the Accords book laid.

“Secretary Ross, did your meeting go as well as you hoped?” You asked. Ross shook his head in annoyance and motioned for you to have a seat. You hesitated, but obliged and sat in a seat caddy corner of him.

“In three days time there will be a meeting in Vienna to ratify the Sokovia Accords,” Ross said and tapped the book that laid before you. “117 nations will be present, including the King of Wakanda to give a few words. . . I’m expecting your presence there.”

You glanced at the book before you and leaned backwards into the chair and crossed your arms. “You said this was an Avengers only matter. . And as you so eloquently put it, I’m no Avenger. So why are you ‘expecting’ my presence?”

“General Talbot has been unable to contact the Director of SHIELD as of late, and we would like to have the cooperation from your organization to show unity on this matter.”

You nodded at his explanation, but shrugged your shoulders a bit. “Sorry sir, but I answer to Coulson-”

“And in the event such as this that we cannot initiate contact, you answer to me,” Ross said. You opened your mouth to question that statement and Ross stood from his place. “The orders are simple. Your presence is required, that’s all. Show solidarity behind these Accords.”

“What you’re asking me is to support something that I don’t know a lot about, and something that I quite frankly don’t feel comfortable doing.”

Ross nodded as you spoke. You felt satisfied to leave him speechless, until he pressed a button on the remote that controlled the screen in the room and your face began to pop up. Images of you in Berlin, Paris, Moscow, Sochi, the list continued. You were pictured amongst world leaders and politicians, evil men, and even doing unthinkable things. You looked from the back wall that was the screen back to him and shook your head.

“What is this? Blackmail?”

“No, no of course not,” he reassured you, though the sentiment was definitely not there. Your glare narrowed a bit and he faced you fully. “It’s a reminder. Tony has done a great deal in hiding this from the public, but Homeland Security isn’t too fond of your previous dealings.”

“I had no control over that and you know it,” you tried to argue but Ross clapped his hand together.

“I may, but they don’t. In their eyes Hydra, and SHIELD were one and the same,” Ross explained. You sighed and shook your head. “So, I’m expecting to see you at the Accords signing.”

“I guess you will,” you said and stood from your place. Without offering a farewell, you exited the room and hurried down the hall to the common area you hoped everyone was in. You breathed heavily, clenching your fist open and closed to alleviate your nerves. The closer you approached the more arguing you could hear. If Ross was with you, you could tell him you had an answer to your own question on how the meeting went.

“--There’s no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I’m game. If we can’t accept limitations, if we’re boundary-less, we’re no better that the bad guys,” Tony said. You had entered the room quietly as he spoke, earning a couple glances from Sam and Natasha, but Tony and Steve were too focused on one another. You leaned up against the wall, and just listened.

“Tony, someone dies on your watch, you don’t give up,” Steve retorted. Tony motioned at him as he sat himself down on a couch.

“Who said we’re giving up?”

“We are if we’re not taking responsibility for our actions. This document just shifts the blame,” Steve explained. Rhodey shifted behind where Steve stood and walked around to face him.

“I’m sorry. Steve, that. . . That is  _ dangerously  _ arrogant. This is the  _ United Nations  _ we’re talking about. It’s not the World Security Council, it’s not SHIELD, it’s not Hydra.”

“No,” Steve said, and you could see the look on his face change. “But it’s run by people with agendas, and agendas change.”

“That’s  _ good _ ,” Tony interjected. “That’s why I’m here. When I realized what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut it down and stopped manufacturing.”

“Tony, you chose to do that,” Steve said. His eyes finally caught a glimpse of you from the corner of his eye and his attention landed on you for a moment. You offered him a sad smile, and he continued his thought. “If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don’t think we should go? What if there’s somewhere we need to go, and they don’t let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own.”

“If we don’t do this now, it’s gonna be done  _ to  _ us later. That’s the fact, that won’t be pretty,” Tony said. You could see Wanda fumble with her fingers in the distance.

“You’re saying they’ll come for me,” she stated and you looked down at your feet.

“We would protect you,” Vision said and you nodded to yourself a bit.

“Maybe Tony’s right,” Natasha’s voice said. Your attention shot up at the sound and nearly everyone else did as well. “If we have one hand on the steering wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off--”

“Aren’t you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?” Sam asked. Natasha shrugged a bit and your gaze met Steve’s again and he offered you a short smile.

“I’m just. . . I’m reading the terrain. We have made some very public mistakes. We need to win back their trust,” she finished explaining. You could see Tony shift in excitement.

“I’m sorry, did I just mishear you or did you agree with me?” Tony asked. You saw Steve shift a bit in his chair and pull out his phone to check something while the two continued their banter.

“Oh I want to take it back now,” Nat said.

“Nope. You can’t retract it. Thank you. Unprecedented. Case closed! I win,” Tony tried to joke to lighten the mood. Steve turned his phone off and mumbled something as he stood.

“I have to go,” he said shortly. He walked towards the stairs in the room and everyone watched him go. You pushed yourself off the wall and as you passed Tony you ran your hand over his shoulder, giving him a chance to place his hand over yours for a moment. But you followed after Steve down the stairs, and slowed your pace when you saw his somber stance. You stopped a couple steps above him, and he didn’t look up to acknowledge your presence. You took a couple more careful steps down until you stood on the step just above him, and gently ran your hand up his arm until it rested just on his shoulder. Your touch seemed to pull him out of his trance when his head shifted just slightly to glance over his shoulder at you.

“Steve,” you nearly whispered. You ran your hand over his back to his other shoulder and your free hand went to the shoulder closest to you. Steve let out a hefty sigh and nestled into your tough, and you rubbed his shoulders gently. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he reassured you. Steve shifted under your touch so that he faced you now, and you adjusted your hands to stroke the back of his neck, and the other rested on the arm that came to hold onto your waist. “Everything’s fine. Besides what’s going on up there.”

You glanced up and let out a soft sigh. “Right. . . About that-”

“Let’s. . . Not talk about that right now,” Steve cut you off. You nodded a bit and he squeezed your hip a bit. “Are you done for the day?”

“I can be,” you told him. “Where are you whisking me away to this time Captain?”

Steve let out a satisfied sound and he pulled you closer to his body, bringing you down to the same step he was on. Your nails scratched the nape of his neck and into his hair and he gripped your waist a bit firmer. “Well I was thinking we could go for a drive, but keep that up-”

“Keep what up, Captain?” You asked playfully. Steve groaned quietly and pressed a quick kiss to your head.

“You’ll be the death of me, Stark,” he whispered and you chuckled lightly.

“Take me away from here, Rogers.”

* * *

_ Two days until the Accords signing in Vienna. _

Steve had done exactly what you asked him to do, he whisked you away from the compound for hours last night. He aimlessly drove through the countryside before parking somewhere secluded, and you both laid under the stars. Steve as much as he tried to be there in the moment, he just wasn’t. Something bothered him, whatever it was in that message, it bothered him to his core. That night when you both returned to your quarters, it was the first night he didn’t hold you when you both fell asleep.

Tensions were still high at the compound. There were now two days until the Accords were to be signed in Vienna, and the Avengers were eerily quiet. Steve was up and gone before you awoke, and while you worked your shift you were very aware of the silence that hung in the air. As the day progressed and the sun eventually fell, you found yourself hunkered down on one of the couches in the common area, finishing up some work. With how focused you were, you didn’t hear someone settle down beside you. Not until they cleared their throat.

“They’re working you too hard,” Tony said. “I’m gonna have to have a long talk with Coulson about that.”

You set the tablet you were working on down and averted your attention to your brother, who smiled at you happily. You couldn’t help but smile back, he always managed to put you in a good mood. “Well if you can get a hold of him, I’d like in on that conversation too.”

Tony pulled his phone from his pocket and set it down on the table, and it projected some images before you both. “I’m guessing that’s what all this is about?”

You held his gaze for a few moments, before looking at the images. They were the same ones Ross showed you of your missions around the world. You looked back at Tony whose playfully expression was gone and replaced with a stoney look. “Possibly.”

Tony shook his head before grabbing the device and the images disappeared. He shoved it back into his pocket and grumbled a bit. “What is he trying to do by blackmailing you?”

“In his words, it isn’t blackmail,” you explained sarcastically. “But Homeland Security isn’t fond of my “previous dealings” and they see Hydra and SHIELD as one and the same then.”

“You had no control over that,” Tony said with a shake of his head. “Ross knows that.”

“I said the same thing,” you told him. “But he wants me there in Vienna. So. . .”

“So you’ll be in Vienna,” Tony finished for you, and watched as you nodded. He let out a sigh and reached for something in his pocket again. “I guess now is as good a time to give you this.”

You looked over at him with a raised brow, and he held his hand out to you and wiggled his fingers for you. You offered your hand and Tony grabbed it gently, and you watched as he pulled a bracelet-like piece out and slid it over your hand until it laid on your wrist.

“This directly ties into FRIDAY’s systems,” Tony explained as he rotated your hand so he could trace over the top of it with his thumb. “Now she’ll be with you wherever you need, and I have one too.”

You could see a similar device on Tony’s wrist, though his resembled a watch. You smiled at him and placed your free hand over his. “Thank you, Tony.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” he said and you dropped your hand that covered his as he tapped your hand. “You see this?”

His finger pointed at the itching in the bracelet, which resembled his famous arc reactor design. You offered a nod and he smiled. “Tap it and pull it forward.”

When you gave him a strange look he tapped the side of your leg. “Go ahead, I’m not getting any younger.”

“Definitely not,” you commented. Tony rolled his eyes and you looked back to your wrist. You did as he said and tapped the bracelet, and the emblem glowed a light blue like the one that used to reside in his chest, or in his suit or armour. You then pulled the bracelet up back towards your fingers, and gasped a bit when the metal from the bracelet began to form over the rest of your hand. In a matter of seconds, your hand was encased in the same metal Tony was always in. You flipped your hand over and looked over the silver and similar crimson red and wiggled your fingers.

“Tony,” you started. You looked over to meet his gaze and you smiled at him. “This is. . Thank you.”

“If you’re going out into the world, I gotta make sure you’re safe,” he explained. He grabbed your hand and flipped it back and pressed the emblem, and the metal retracted back into it. You looked over Tony’s face and something twinkled in his eyes, and it made your chest drop. “So you have to promise to wear this, so I know you’re okay.”

“I will,” you reassured him. Tony brought your hand up to his lips and placed a quick kiss to your fingers, and his eyes searched over your face for something.

“Does he make you happy?” Tony asked suddenly. You fought back a smile at his question and nodded your head.

“He does,” you confirmed. Tony smiled a bit before glancing down at your hand that he held, and grabbed it with both of his now.

“And he treats you well?” Tony asked. You bit your lip to hold back a laugh and nodded once again.

“He does,” you said again. Tony nodded and looked up to meet your gaze. He tapped your hand lightly and nodded behind him.

“I think you should tell him about Vienna then,” Tony said. You nodded a bit and let out a sigh.

You knew you should. But you also knew what Steve’s reaction would be.

_ One day until the Accords signing in Vienna. _

You were right. Steve did not take the news of you needing to be in Vienna very well. He looked over at you like you had told him his dog died (not that he owned one, but now you knew what that look looked like). You stood there as he packed a bag and felt something heavy in the back of your throat.

“Steve--”

“You’re supporting a document that takes away our choice, our  _ freedom _ , and any Enhanced person they come across” he interjected. You stared at his back and bit back a cry. “How can you be okay with that when it happened to you?”

One thing you had learned about Steve over this time was that he could be very strong headed. It was an endearing quality at times, when he cared so deeply about something and he let it be known, but you didn’t like that in this instance. Especially when he wasn’t listening to you, but that? That crossed a line. You took a couple steps forward while Steve moved to your shared closet and you grabbed his arm.

“Steven Grant Rogers, you aren’t listening to me and that is  _ not  _ fair,” you said. Your voice was low and shook a bit and Steve definitely noticed. He stopped in his tracks but didn’t dare face you, instead just listened to what you had to say. “I’m going to Vienna because I was ordered to by Ross, and no other reason. It’s either that, or. . .”

“Or what?” Steve asked quietly. You let go of his arm and shook your head, which he saw with a glance over his shoulder.

“Or. . I run the risk of them locking me up,” you said quietly. That made Steve finally turn around and look you straight on, and you offered him a sad smile. “And what would you or Tony do without me?”

Steve’s expression softened and he carefully collected you in his arms. Steve held you that night, and when the morning came and he was gone somewhere he didn’t share (with Sam and Natasha in tow it seemed) you felt oddly alone. Tony was gone the day before the Accords were to be signed, and you chalked up his absence to not wanting to be around when it all went down. So as you often did, you travelled alone to Vienna, rubbing at the bracelet to comfort you.

Being in a new environment was nerve wracking for you. The eyes that were on you as you walked into the building where everything was going down, you felt like you were going to sweat away into oblivion. Following behind the group of people inside the glass lined room, your eyes immediately fell upon your friend Nat and who you recognized to be Prince T’Challa. You made your way past a couple people, ignoring the looks of them before coming beside your friend who gave you a supportive smile. 

“Miss Stark,” the Prince greeted you warmly. “I’m glad you were able to make it.”

“Yeah well who could say no to the persuasion that is Thaddeus Ross,” you joked. Nat stifled a laugh beside you and the Prince actually cracked a smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, your Highness-”

“Please,” he cut you off and put his hands up. “Just T’Challa is fine. Your Highness should be directed to my father.”

Natasha straightened up beside you and your gaze went behind the Prince to the King of Wakanda approaching, and you straightened your posture as well. T’Challa shifted as his father came to his side, and the King smiled among the group.

“Son, Miss Romanoff, Miss Stark,” he greeted. Natasha and you offered a nod in respect and Natasha moved her arms behind her back.

“King T’Chaka. Please, allow me to apologize for what happened in Nigeria,” she offered. The King held a stoney gaze and you nodded along with her words.

“Thank you,” the King replied. “Thank you both for agreeing to all this. I’m sad to hear that Captain Rogers will not be joining us today.”

You casted a glance sideways at Nat, and she averted her gaze quickly. “So are we, your Highness.”

A voice came over the speaker and announced the beginning of the assembly. The group glanced at one another and T’Challa nodded at you two. “That is the future calling. Such a pleasure to meet you both.”

“Thank you,” Nat said and you both were off to your spots among the room. Natasha took a seat at her assigned seat, while you were left standing off to the side, on the opposite wall of T’Challa himself. You fiddled with your bracelet and your mind wandered to what Steve could have been up to right now. Where was he? Why had he been acting strange around you recently?

“We will not, however, let misfortune drive us back. We will fight to improve the world we wish to join. I am grateful to the Avengers for supporting this initiative,” King T’Chaka said. His words brought you from your train of thought and for a moment. Your gaze met Nat’s for a moment before you returned your gaze back to the King. T’Challa looked outside and you followed his gaze out the window, and watched what appeared to be a bomb squad searching a tv van.

“Wakanda is proud to extend its hand in peace,” the King said, all while the bomb squad scattered from the van. When you realized what was going on, T’Challa called out, and you snapped back towards the people inside the room.

“Everybody get down!”

An enormous explosion cracks through the air, shattering the glass into the room, and smoke enveloped the building. Everything had happened so fast, you were thrown from your place against what you could only tell was a wall. The ringing in your ears drowned out any other sound when you could finally regain your composure and try and lift yourself up, only to feel a sharp pain in your side. You squinted at the sight of the chaos before you through the black and grey smoke and looked down at where the pain resided.

One of the marble walls of the desks had come down on you. You were pinned, and your gaze went to the bracelet on your wrist. You carefully brought your wrist up to your face and grunted through the pain.

“FRIDAY,” you managed. You looked around the room once more when your eyes landed on the sight of T’Challa crawling over to the King. “FRIDAY we need medical and an evac team ASAP.”

“Already on it boss,” her voice chimed. Your heart fell as you watched T’Challa pick his father up and rock the King in his arms. “You have an incoming call from Mr. Stark, shall I patch him through?”

You tried to pull on your leg again and closed your eyes at the pain. You balled your fist up over the rubble that surrounded you and you shook your head to yourself. “Just. . . Let him know I’m alright. But the King of Wakanda he’s. . He’s gone.”

“I’ll let him know,” her voice chimed again.

You nodded in understanding, and when an evac team was finally able to get into the room, you waved them away from you and told them to focus on the civilians and especially the Wakandan Prince. You could wait. You focused on the blinking emblem on the bracelet Tony gifted you and wondered to yourself what the hell just happened. This attack and the loss of King T’Chaka was sure to change the world, and you had an inkling that it was going to be yet another mission involving the Avengers.


	9. Don't Ask Me To Pick a Side

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you to everyone who reached out and offered encouragement and understanding. it's been a month now since losing her and I still feel that hollowness, but it's getting better (not a lot, but a bit better.) So I wanted to share what I had ready for you guys.
> 
> xoxo  
> caitlyn

When the news broke about Vienna, it was like the world had stopped for Steve Rogers. Sam was the one to break him from his train of thought when he gripped onto his shoulder. But he couldn’t tear his eyes from the screen that went from showing the footage of what happened inside the room, to the footage of his friend, Bucky Barnes, placing the bomb inside the van. From what they knew, 70 people had been injured and 12 dead including the King of Wakanda. There had been no word on you though, and he was quick to accept Sharon’s offer to accompany her to Vienna ASAP.

So now here he stood, dressed in casual wear to blend in just like Natasha Romanoff had taught him, overlooking the scene from a restaurant styled building across the street. He scanned the working crowd, seeing what he could assume were extraction and medic teams until his eyes landed on his familiar friend. Without tearing his attention from her, who spoke with who he knew was Prince T’Challa from the news, he pulled his phone from his pocket and scrolled through his contacts until he found hers. Just in time as the line began to ring, he watched the crowned prince leave her side, and Natasha lifted her phone to her ear, leaning forward on the bench she sat on.

“Yeah?” Natasha greeted. Hearing her voice made Steve relax a bit, and he began to scan the crowd for you now.

“You alright?” Steve asked. Natasha shrugged her shoulders a bit though she winced at the pain settling into her body.

“Ah, yeah, thanks.. I got lucky,” she said. Natasha looked over her shoulder back at the building and when Steve couldn’t locate you he focused back on her. She had begun to stand and crossed her arms over her chest. “I know how much Barnes means to you. I really do. Stay home. You’ll only make this worse, for all of us. Please.”

“Are you saying you’ll arrest me?” Steve asked. Natasha grimaced a smile and lightly shook her head to herself before glancing around. She knew he was nearby, she could feel it in her bones.

“No. But someone will, if you interfere. That’s how it works now.”

“If he’s this far gone, Nat, I should be the one to bring him in,” Steve said.

“Why?” Natasha asked. Steve sighed and glanced back towards Sam.

“Because I’m the one least likely to die trying,” Steve said. Before Natasha could answer him he hung up, and nearly immediately called you.

“Miss Stark,” FRIDAY’s voice spoke out. You shifted from your spot on the ground, coughing at the dust that had settled over you. “You have an incoming call from Captain Rogers-”

“Put him through,” you said. After a couple of seconds of silence and you readjusted yourself to the low light in the building, you pushed yourself up a bit on your arms. “Steve?”

“Thank god,” his voice filled the room. You smiled a bit to yourself and Steve inwardly let out a breath of relief on his end. “When I didn’t see anything on the news I.. I thought.. Nevermind. Are you okay? Where are you?”

“Ah, well,” you paused as you looked around your surroundings. “Just kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place.”

Steve’s expression fell, though you didn’t know that besides his silence, he looked over at Sam in a panic at the realization of your words. Slowly, he walked over to his friend when he asked the next question. “(Y/N).. Are you still in there?”

You hesitated, and Steve could tell. You didn’t even have to admit it before he whispered to Sam that you were still in that fucking building. You slowly eased yourself back to lay against the dust covered ground, head rested on one arm while you brought the bracelet with your lifeline up to your face. “Yeah.. Yeah I’m still in here.. Steve I haven’t seen anyone in awhile.”

At that, Steve saw nothing but panic. Sam and him were dashing across the street and Steve tried his best to remain calm for you. “Do you know how long?”

“Um,” you paused. Really you had no idea how long it had been, you just knew it must have been at least a couple hours since the explosion had even happened. “Maybe a few minutes.. Thirty? Maybe?”

Steve and Sam edged the perimeter of the building, avoiding the sight of anyone they could manage. From cleanup crews to evacs, the two men were able to successfully reach a service door on the side of the building, out of sight, and Steve used his shoulder to knock the door open. Carefully looking past corners before rounding them, they managed to find some intact stairs, and Steve climbed them two steps at a time. “Can you tell me where you are?”

Steve could hear you cough on the other side of the call, and the two Avengers came to a stop on the floor where the lights flickered in the stairwell. Slowly Steve pulled the door open, glancing into the hallway as he tried to get an answer from you. He could see down the hallway where it was dark and disheveled, and they made their way down there, carefully stepping over rubble and loose wires that poured from the ceiling. “I think.. I think the explosion sent me towards the wall? Steve I don’t know.. It’s dark and I’m tired.”

“You gotta stay awake for me,” Steve said in nearly a whisper when they came to a halt. There was a beam blocking the hallway and a couple pieces of sheetrock. Stealing a glance at Sam they had to work to move the pieces out of the way. “Do you hear me? You gotta stay awake.”

“Have I told you I loved you recently?” You asked. You smiled a bit to yourself as your eyes grew heavy and fluttered shut. Your fingers fanned out over the dirt covered floor, and you sighed a bit. “Because I do.. I love you.”

Steve paused while Sam moved a couple pieces of the sheetrock away, and gripped a hold of his phone. He called out your name and focused on the door just a couple feet away. You were slipping out of his reach and he couldn’t fucking accept that.

“God damn it,” Steve muttered, but before he could pull his phone away and shove it into his pocket, a voice chimed in.

“Captain, she’s breathing but I’m losing her, I must alert an evac team-”

“I’m coming FRIDAY,” Steve interjected and ended the call. He had to focus on clearing the rest of the sheetrock and when they finally managed, Steve and Sam were able to slip under the beam and he rushed to the door that hung off its hinges, and glanced around the fallen room. They coughed, the dust more apparent in this section of the building, and Steve looked around the room, but Sam tapped his arm and pointed somewhere. Steve followed his motion, and his heart stopped at the sight before him.

Laying on the ground in the dark, you were covered in dirt and soot. Steve rushed over, hoping over pieces of wall and debris, Sam following close behind, until he could kneel down to you. He carefully placed one hand on your face and another to your wrist, once he was able to feel your steady and short breaths he looked over your body, pinned under what looked to be a marble wall.

“She’s pinned,” Steve observed. He reluctantly pulled himself from your side and stood, resting his hands on the thick wall. “I can lift it Sam, but-”

“I’ll pull her out,” Sam finished for him. Steve gave his friend a nod and focused on the task before him. As Sam carefully got a hold of you, Steve was able to grip a hold of the marble wall that trapped you, and started to lift up. He could feel the strain cross his face, but he had to get you out, all he could think about was you. He grunted, lifting up as much as he could until he heard Sam shuffle by his side.

“I got her!” Sam said. Steve carefully dropped the marble wall back down and fell to the ground, and looked over at Sam who held you in his arms. He tried to catch his breath while Sam checked you over, then met Steve’s gaze. “We need to get her out of here, get her some fresh air.”

Steve nodded along with his words, and scooted over. Sam helped transfer you into his arms, and Steve stood carefully , not taking his eyes off of you while he carried you out the way they came. He didn’t look away until he glared against the sunshine and was kneeling down into the ground, holding your upper body in his arms. Steve brought his hand up to stroke your cheek with his thumb, feeling the swell of tears behind his eyes.

“FRIDAY.. How is she?”

“I’m detecting a minor fractured rib, there’s too much smoke inhalation for me to tell if she needs further medical evaluation,” her voice replied back. Steve stroked your face again and he grimaced a smile.

“Baby come on.. Come on please,” he whispered. He stroked his thumb from the corner of your eye up to your hairline. He shook his head and rubbed your arm with his other hand. “Baby please.. Say something.”

Sam watched on, and when you didn’t stir he glanced around. He would have to go find a medic, you needed an oxygen mask quickly, when he turned to see what he could do to help, he stopped when he heard a cough and a gasp. Steve frantically stroked your face once more as you gasped to get air into your lungs, but was met with the sharp pain from your ribcage. As your eyes fluttered open and you took in the sight before you and Steve, your brows narrowed in confusion.

“Steve,” you muttered before a coughing spell started. Steve smiled past the tears he swore wouldn’t fall, relief filling his body as you searched his face. “You’re here?”

“I had to make sure my best girl was alright,” Steve said in a whisper. He stroked his thumb over your cheek again and you closed your eyes at the sensation.

“Oh well ya know.. Just a little banged up and bruised, but I’m fine,” you said. Steve sighed, glancing over at Sam who held back a laugh and smiled a bit. You moved a bit and Steve helped you to sit up, though you took a sharp inhale at the sharp pain.

“You need a medic,” Sam commented and you nodded with him.

“Can you take me?” You asked. When Steve didn’t answer right away you looked over at him and he grimaced a smile.

“I’m afraid we.. We can’t stay, doll,” he whispered. You glanced between him and Sam who had his arms crossed and had the look on his face that said  _ don’t ask me, ask him _ . You focused back on Steve and nodded a bit.

“Then can you help me to the perimeter? I can manage from there.”

“Of course, anything,” Steve said. So, carefully he helped you up to your feet and kept an arm around your body. He helped you over to the perimeter that was set out around the extraction area, far enough away that no one noticed who was there. When you could grip onto the gate yourself, you let out a pent up sigh and Steve rubbed his hand over your back. He watched as you looked around, taking in the new sights before you, and watched as you caught the sight of the news, and how you froze at the sight of  _ who _ was on it. In fact in your mind, something rang like something was.. Off. Wrong.

“Steve--”

“I know what you’re going to say,” Steve cut you off before you could even start. He moved a bit so he stood directly behind you, and moved both his arms around your back. You relaxed against his torso, and he came to place a kiss to the top of your head. “I’m the only one who can bring him in.. It’s gotta be me.”

You sighed a bit against him. He could tell you were second guessing what he was saying, but he eased himself into your back when your hands came up to cover up his that held you to him. “I know Steve.. I know what you have to do.”

After that statement you turned around in his arms, trying your best to hold back the grimace of pain. Steve lifted one of his hands up to hold your dirty face and you smiled at him softly. Steve needed to savour this moment because something was telling him it would be awhile before he got to experience this with you again.

“Try not to make too much of a mess,” you commented. Steve chuckled a bit and slowly pressed a kiss to your lips. You gripped onto his clothing, holding him there for one final kiss. When you separated you did your best to hide the tears pooling in your eyes. You looked past Steve at Sam, and smiled his way too. “That goes for you too, Sam.”

“If anyone is going to make it a mess, it’s him.”

“Thanks Sam,” Steve muttered which only made you smile.

* * *

Tony was angry. No scratch that, he was pissed off.

First he had to deal with Ross, then he had to deal with the fact Steve was going rogue, and then  _ you  _ decline his call? Unacceptable behaviour. He was in a suit and in the air in ten minutes. FRIDAY brought him up to date on everything on his way there, so when he basically stormed into the medical room you were in, he was a lot more calm when he could finally see you.

And then Steve and Sam had to go and make things worse. Tony was learning that Steve was probably more stubborn than he was, and he bet that made his father roll over in his grave. It was like Tony was dealing with children today. Starting with you.

But you seemed to be almost as irritated as Tony when Steve and Sam were brought in. Did Tony notice you weren’t there to “welcome” Steve to this facility and let him know he was pretty much under arrest? Of course he did, and Tony bet Steve noticed too. 

Tony Stark and Steve Rogers rarely saw eye to eye. There were their moments when they came together and it was great.. This was not one of those times. It seemed this time they really were standing on two opposite sides of a double edged sword. This wasn’t like New York when they finally came together after butting heads because of Coulson, this wasn’t like Ultron when Steve said they would (possibly fail) together too. This was different.

Was Tony looking at the end of the Avengers?

So naturally when Steve pretty much stormed out, he wasn’t surprised when you eventually (finally) joined him and Sam in another conference room. Steve watched silently at the sight of his friend, his  _ best _ friend, in a cell. The air changed in the room when you pushed the door open, Sam looked over his shoulder when you placed a hand on his shoulder. He gave you a slight smile when you gave him a reassuring  _ “Are you okay?”  _ Squeeze. Steve could practically feel your eyes on the back of his neck, all the way until you stood by his side.

“So much for not making too much of a mess,” you commented. Steve glanced over at you, but you didn’t seem to hold any resentment in your stance. In fact, you had a small smirk on your face.

The Stark humor definitely didn’t skip a generation.

“Is it bad?” Steve asked you. You met his gaze and the smirk disappeared. But too soon you tore your gaze from him and looked back at the feed of the man locked away.

“Ross is pissed. He wanted you two thrown into a cell,” you stated. Sam lightly scoffed behind you.

“Yeah. Romanoff and your brother made that clear,” Sam said. You crossed your arms and shrugged a bit.

“These are.. Murky waters we’re in. Unknown territory,” you paused and looked back over at Steve. “He thinks he’s doing the right thing.”

“Do you think he is?” Steve asked suddenly. He watched as your expression fell, and looked back at the screen.

“Don’t ask me to pick a side in this, Steve,” you warned him. Before he could press further, the door behind them reopened, with Sharon Carter entering the room. As though she could feel the static tension in the room, she handed Sam and then Steve something, which gave you a chance to back away from Steve’s side.

“Here’s the receipt for your gear,” she commented. You pressed your back against the wall, carefully of your movements under the watchful eye of Steve. Sam piped up near your side.

“Bird costume? Come on,” he said in a sarcastic tone. You couldn’t help but smile as Agent Carter shrugged her shoulders.

“I didn’t write it,” she replied. Sharon leaned forward and unmuted the footage of Bucky getting his evaluations, and soon enough silence fell over the people in the room. Your phone buzzed in your pocket, and after reading the cryptic alert you had programmed into FRIDAY, you excused yourself.

Steve watched as you left the room. He knew your obligations right now. He knew asking you to pick a side during all this was wrong on his part. Tony was your brother, your family. But watching you walk out of that room felt like you were slipping out of his fingers. And when he looked back at Bucky’s feed, he couldn’t help but wonder..

What did Bucky remember about December 16th, 1991?


	10. That's My Girl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pls don't hate me :(

Going up against the Winter Soldier was asking to have your ass handed to you. Whether that was in the form of bruises or asking to be killed, if you attempted to get in his way - he would mow you down. No ifs, ands, or buts. So what in the world were you thinking when Sharon Carter told Tony, Natasha, and you to follow her?

You weren’t thinking straight, that was clear enough.

Bucky practically blew through Tony with his single gauntlet, not without firing a shot into the glove much to your dismay. Sharon practically flew into a table, and Natasha was nearly choked out before T’Challa was able to get his attention off of her and onto him. Seeing the aftermath though, something began to tighten in your chest, and you pressed your back against the wall.

Flashes of light filled your vision, prompting what you could only make out as muffled voices in your ears.

_ “Мы не должны потерять солдата,” (We must not lose the Soldier) the deeper voice said. You couldn’t help but briefly look up from the spot you were staring at one the floor to listen. You knew the footsteps that came closer and closer as Dr. Yeggor and Ustin, and clamped your eyes shut when they grew closer, just knowing what was coming next - how they were coming for you. _

_ “Ничто не может остановить его, как только он начал.” (Nothing can stop him once he has begun.) _

Your eyes fluttered open when you could finally get your breathing even, and looked back around the corner at the three people picking themselves up from the dust. You stared at the back of Tony’s head before you slinked back down the hallway and started into a pained jog down the halls. If you could get through to him in this state, get Bucky new orders, maybe you could stop this before it got any worse.

If you had a superpower it would be overestimating yourself.

When you turned a corner to head to the stairs you weren’t surprised to see his back, why would you be? The only way out was up. All other exits have been put on lockdown but not the roof, and when you came to a halt you had to build your courage before speaking out to him.

“Солдат,” (Soldier) you called out. You could see Bucky’s hunkered shoulders stop mid-push and hesitate to look back at you. He slowly turned back to look at you, even from the distance you were from him you could see the darkness in his eyes, the shortness of breath seep from his lips, and could see how he looked you over in judgement. Analysis. But then there was a flicker of recognition.

How did he recognize you?

You took a couple steps forward carefully, both hands where you knew he could see them and palms up so he could see you weren’t holding anything. If he was anything like you, trained in any similar way, he was making a list of reasons as to why he should either trust you, or looking for reasons to kill you. But if you were defenseless, you could be useful. And to Hydra, if you were useful in any way, you would survive another day. Slowly he turned to face you fully, until you stood mere feet from him.

“Y вас есть новые заказы,” (You have new orders) you told him before you came to stop before him. Bucky still hadn’t taken his eyes off of you, and practically towered over you and watched you through a few loose strands of hair. You were in over your head, and took a sharp breath.

“Пора отступать.” (It is time to stand down.)

Silence filled the corridor, Bucky was processing what you had said. Should you have expected him to react in an aggressive way? Yes. Were you still surprised when he reached forward with his metal arm and gripped at your throat, and slammed you against one of the walls? Yes. Bucky was strong enough to lift you high enough off the ground where you couldn’t feel it under your feet. All you knew was that he pressed you so firmly against the wall you knew it did not help your already fragile body, and when your head impacted the wall you reached forward to grip in two places: his arm and the fabric of his shirt.

Bucky stared at you as you gasped for air and tears swelled in your eyes, and you tried your best to speak to him. “James.. Buck--”

You could see his pupils dilate behind his eyelashes, and he looked over you once more. You tightened your fingers against his chest on his shirt and tugged on it. “Please--”

He dropped you suddenly and you landed on the floor in a  _ thump _ . You rubbed at your neck and when you finally managed to look back up again, Bucky was gone. You stared at the door he had disappeared into and heard more footsteps coming from down the hallway you had come from moments before. You pushed yourself up to sit more against the wall when someone kneeled before you, but you couldn’t help but jump when their hands touched you.

Steve noticed.

He noticed the red marks along your neck and the wetness in your eyes. How you looked to inwardly curse yourself when you realized it was him who was touching you, and he cupped your cheek in the palm of his hand. “Are you-?”

“I’m fine,” you managed. You had to clear your throat before you motioned to the door he was originally headed for. “He’s.. The roof--”

Steve nodded and you met his eyes once more. He was looking for permission. Steve was looking you over to make sure what he was about to do would be okay with you, and you placed your hand over his and gave him the best smile you could. “It’s okay. Go.”

And so you watched Seve hesitate from leaving you behind, but then watched as he disappeared to find his friend. You couldn’t seem to find the strength to pull yourself up any further from the floor, and by the time someone else came to find you, Tony was the only one who could get you up off the floor. He didn’t say anything else until you got further down the hall and he whispered something to you.

“Rogers and Wilson are declared enemies of the state. Barnes is also unaccounted for,” he told you. You nodded slowly to yourself, with only one thing on your mind while Tony brought you to be evaluated by a medic team.

Things were going to get messier, but what you didn’t know was how.

* * *

Ross gave Tony exactly 36 hours to bring Steve, Sam, and Bucky in, but that was nearly 24 hours ago now. Tony was finally able to track them down to an airport after being spotted in an older VW Beetle on facial recognition cams, and disappeared shortly after to “call someone in.” Whatever that meant. So you were doing what you do best, you were watching over any and all social channels for any other mentions of your rogue guys.

Tony was anticipating them to arrive at a local airport, which only made sense in the grand scheme of things. What you were wondering was where exactly they were planning on going. Was Steve going to reach out? Would he even be able to safely?.. Would you ever see him again?

With all the swirling thoughts of your future, not just with Steve but with SHIELD now, you felt your phone start to buzz in your pocket. You reached back behind you and pulled it out, flipping it so that you could read the number on it, only to be met with an all caps UNKNOWN. You turned from the screens and answered the call, pressing the phone to your ear.

“This is Stark,” you answered. You could make out the sound of wind hitting the speaker until whoever on the other line shielded it from the impact.

“It’s me,” Steve’s voice said in your ear. You straightened up a bit more and looked quickly over your shoulder to see no one was truly paying attention to you. You walked towards the doors that led into the hallway and quietly pushed them open and let out a pent up sigh when you were alone.

“Steve.. What’s going on?”

“That doctor that was in the room, he’s behind all of this,” Steve explained. You continued down the hallway until you could hide away in a little crevice and listened to him talk. “He framed Bucky for the UN bombing, he triggered the Winter Soldier programming in him.. He’s trying to find the remainder of them.”

“There’s more? More super soldiers?”

“According to Bucky,” Steve sighed. You crossed your arms over your chest and turned around to look back to the hallway and closed your eyes a bit. “We have to at least try and stop him.”

“I know,” you replied in almost a whisper. Silence fell between you two, and you closed your eyes to fight back the tears that were forming.

“I need to ask you something,” Steve said. You sucked in a breath and opened your eyes again and nodded to yourself.

“Anything,” you said.

“If… If I can’t come back to you,” Steve paused. You closed your eyes again before you looked up to the ceiling when he spoke again. “How would you feel about living that life we talked about in secret?”

“Are you asking me to run away with you?” You asked.

“Only if you want to,” Steve answered. “And I hope you still do.”

You smiled a bit to yourself and rubbed the arm that held the phone up. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

* * *

There was no parting goodbye, no final  _ I love you  _ because you expected neither of you knew the events at the airport would lead to this.

Sam, Wanda, Clint, and someone named Scott were captured, and brought into holding on what Ross called “The Raft.” Tony reached out to you shortly after arriving on site, not only to check in but to also ask if you had heard anything from Steve. None of those who were locked up were giving Tony any kind of answer, and unfortunately you didn’t have anything for him either.

_ “Would you tell me if you did know?” Tony had asked you. You remember sucking in a deep breath before Tony continued on with his thoughts. “I think Steve may be right.. About the man who was in the room. His family they were in Sokovia-” _

_ “I would tell you Tony,” you told him. “I still have access to some information, maybe I can find something.” _

_ “That’s my girl.” _

The sun was setting lower in Germany as you worked your way through different documents stored away on a private server Coulson had let you set up a few months back. You were able to offer far more information on Hydra then they expected, and it all was placed in here. Every person, date, detail that could have been saved was. As you worked your way through there were several different faces you recognized, and more importantly there were some you were learning that had far deeper holdings. Directly affecting both Tony and your lives. In layman terms, you were discovering there were far more people involved with your parents murder, even falling under the umbrella of the Winter Soldier programs. With careful glances over your shoulder, you printed out the files to take with you.

Bingo.

You took the papers you had printed and shut the computer down. There was no way Ross or anyone would be able to find out what you knew. You grabbed your jacket from the back of the chair as you stood, pulling your phone out to make a phone call.

“I know where they’re headed.”

“Sam spilled already, I’ll have FRIDAY get you a ride back to the compound-”

You shoved one arm through the material and switched the phone to the other hand to do the same on the other side. “Tony, I love you to death, but the last time I let you handle things it got everyone locked up. You two need a mediator. I’m on my way.”

“Are you doing what I think you’re doing?” Tony asked. You didn’t even get a chance to respond before he interjected again. “No. Absolutely not. Leave that alone, (Y/N).”

You couldn’t help the smile that spread over your face as you entered the elevator and pressed a button. “I’ll see you soon.”

* * *

You would be the first to admit that Tony liked to be dramatic.

People on the outside would picture him entering his Stark Expo in his Iron Man suit to thunderous applause. But as you heard him as he worked to pull open heavy blast doors, you could only imagine what it looked like on the other end. Dramatic. That was just Tony though, he was otherworldly.

“You seem a little defensive,” you heard Tony say. You landed just outside the building after doing a lookover to make sure it really was just you guys there. With a final look out into the snow, you made your way in. Walking in the armour Tony had made for you was a bit odd at first, but once you got the hang of it you felt you weren’t stomping around like before. You had only caught the last bit of their conversation as you neared.

“It’s good to See you Tony,” you heard Steve say.

“You too, Cap,” Tony replied. That’s when you finally passed the doors Tony pried open, definitely noticing the gun pointed towards your brother. Bucky was the only one who saw you enter, and there was the hesitation again.

“Perimeter’s secured,” you chimed in. You made it to Tony’s side and Steve looked at you with.. You didn’t know. But he didn’t look excited you were there. Tony sighed and motioned back at Bucky.

“Hey look, you’re killing me here. There’s a truce, could you maybe put that thing down?” Tony asked. Steve nodded at his friend and slowly but surely Bucky lowered his gun. You couldn’t seem to take your eyes off Steve, and when he realized you were staring he cleared his throat.

“Let’s continue on,” he said. Tony walked on first, and with a raised brow at Steve you followed suit. Bucky and Steve seemed to share a look, and followed behind. Tony edged along carefully and calculated, and when you fell back a bit Steves hand grabbed at your metal covered one.

“What are you doing here?” Steve whispered.

“You two need a mediator,” you replied. “And Tony was dumb enough to build me a suit.”

“I heard that,” Tony commented over his shoulder. You smiled a bit, but Steve only let go of your hand. Before you could push him any further he nodded, and passed you up.

Tony’s helmet re-engaged, and yours did too. Play time was over, and you found your spot next to your brother, Steve and his shield ready by you, and Bucky on his left. Everyone stopped moving as each pair of eyes scanned the open room.

“I got heat signatures,” Tony said.

“How many?” Steve asked. Your eyes landed on what Tony meant.

“Just one.”

Finally everybody moved further in. You couldn’t help but linger behind everyone else, taking in the sights before you. The look of the place was no different than any of the Hydra places you had been in yourself. Each step felt like you were falling deeper into quicksand, until a hand on your shoulder pulled you out of it. You locked eyes with Steve, your Steve, and shook your head. All in a way of saying,  _ I’m fine _ .

“If it’s any comfort, they died in their sleep,” a voice said into the room. “Did you really think I wanted more of you?”

You met Tony’s side again to peer at one of the people in the capsules. Each one had a shot to the head. You peered at your brother when the voice continued on.

“I’m grateful though. They brought you here.”

A light turned on behind one of the walls, and there was the man who was in the interrogation room with Bucky back at the base. Steve, ever the hero, threw his shield into the glass, but it only ricocheted back to him like a frisbee. You could hear Bucky’s gun ready and the hum of Tony’s gauntlet.

“Please, Captain. The Soviets built this chamber to withstand the launch blast of UR-100 rockets.”

“I bet I could beat that,” Tony said, giving the wiggle of his fingers. You rolled your eyes under your helmet and took a step forward.

“Why did you want us here?” You asked him. The man looked at you and smiled a bit. For obvious reasons, it didn’t sit right with you.

“I thought about nothing else for a year. I studied you all. Followed you. All for this moment. To watch an empire crumble from within,” he explained. “The two great pillars of the Avengers, divided by one man’s actions. What’s more beautiful is the Stark’s have no idea what you’ve been hiding from them.”

A screen flickers on, gaining Steve’s attention. He moves next to it and stares at the screen, before looking over at you and Tony.

No. No this wasn’t supposed to happen. Not like this.

Tony was the first to move to the screen, his helmet disappearing and you saw the colour in his face disappear. “I know this road.”

Your helmet disappeared too, and you moved next to Tony to look. The date in the corner flickered back at you, the road made your stomach drop, and your throat dried up.

_ December 16th, 1991. _

_ Driving through the cool night, Howard noticed a motorcycle coming up. Quickly at that. He sits up a bit straighter in the driver seat of the Cadillac he always drove his family in. Maria noticed the increase in speed, her head pressing a bit firmer into the headrest, and after stealing a glance back at her daughter, at you, she looked over at him. _

_ “Howard, slow down.” She asked him. _

The motorcycle reared up on her side, swerving ever so slightly, and that’s what the camera sees. Howard corrected too much, too fast, and the front of the car slammed into a tree. The footage sees no movement for a few moments, just flames that erupted from the engine slowly, until the driver door opened and out fell a man. Your father. Howard Stark. He tried to crawl to the back door, reaching up for the handle to try and pull the door open.. He was coming for you.

You can’t tear your eyes away, and Steve watches on at the two Stark children learning the truth about their parents. And he looks away. Completely disgusted with himself.

The motorcycle comes back into view, skidding to a stop beside the car. The man gets off, walking around the car to your writhing father and picks him up. The soundless audio doesn’t hide the recognition on your fathers face, and Tony and you recognize the assailant at the same moment. Bucky Barnes. Your eyes slam shut as Bucky’s metal fist slams into your father repeatedly, Tony looking away until you both can bring yourselves to look again. 

Your father slumped over dead, bloody and broken in ways you didn’t remember until now.

_ You heard the front door open and your father be placed back into the driver's seat. Your watery vision was sure as his head leaned into the wheel, and the door reclosed. You didn’t know why it did, or why your mother looked so scared as she tried to reach over for your father. You slowly lifted your head up, relaxing it against the back of your seat, feeling uneasy and tired. You could hear the other door open, and your mother trying to talk, but it goes quiet. A deafening silence. You shuffle in your seat, not seeing the man replace your mother back against the seat. _

_ “Daddy?” _

_ On the video you can see the Winter Soldier freeze, his attention now on you. The small figure in the back seat. He’s calculating, looking you over, looking at the blood seep down your cheek from the gash in your head. He straightened and closed the passenger door, allowing you a chance to call out again before your door was opened. _

_ “Mommy?” _

_ Your door opened and you looked to your side, seeing someone you had never met. You reach for your seatbelt, tugging on the tight restraint and whimper a bit. “Hurts. Please-” _

_ The man silently reached past you and undid the belt, but you were about to topple over. He caught you with ease, and dragged you out of the inflamed car, setting you down on the pavement.. _

And then he aimed a gun at the camera and it went out.

The feed dies and you didn't realize you were crying. You stared at the blank screen longer than Tony who you knew was seething, given he lunged for the man from the video. Steve stepped before him and held him back.

“Tony,” he tried to calm but your brother threw his grip off of him. You blinked and looked up, and Bucky and you locked eyes.

“Did you know?” Tony asked.

_ Hesitation _ .

“I didn’t know it was him.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Rogers! DID YOU KNOW?”

Silence filled the room. You haven’t lost Bucky’s sight and you tighten your jaw.

“It was you in Paris,” you whispered. On your side, Steve and Tony looked at you, steady holding your eyes with Bucky. Two trained Hydra agents, not daring to blink or even breathe. “You were there. In the shadows. Close by, listening in.. It was you who shot the three men. Picked me up after I passed out in the alley. It was you, wasn't it?”

“Yes,” Bucky answered. It was the first time you had heard his voice, presently. But it matched. The voice after he pulled you from the car. The whisper after you passed out after killing Marcelle when you got back into the chilly air of Paris, the trauma getting to you. It was Bucky.

And Steve knew.

You tore your eyes from Bucky to look at Steve. Your Steve. You could see the guilt on his face when you turned to face him fully. “You knew this whole time that.. That he..?”

Steve didn’t answer right away, and you could see Tony’s anger boil up, and how it got worse when Steve took a step closer. “I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“You lied to me for  _ a year _ ,” you whispered. “You.. You laid next to me for a year, every night. You held me as I told you I was terrified of forgetting them. You had me fall in love with you and you didn't know how to tell me the truth, Steve?”

Steve’s face fell and he shook his head a bit, reaching out for you. “I’m sorry.. Please-”

Tony snatched his arm and Steve pulled it from his grip. “Don’t fucking try that, Rogers,” Tony warned. The two men glared at one another but you stepped forward, hands reaching up to Tony’s shoulder and pushing him a step back.

“Tony please,” you begged. He was going to explode, things were going to get worse. Your hand reached up to his face to make him look at you and you whispered. “Let’s go. Please. Come with me, Tony.”

He debated your offer. Tony looked you over with those eyes you had only ever seen on your father. But he grabbed your hands and stepped out of your reach. “I have to take care of this.”

You swallowed your defeat. You backed away from Tony, from Steve too, and with a final look to your two men, you disappeared, carrying the weight of your world on your shoulders.


	11. You Thought Wrong

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello so I am posting this bc im doing a big dump of my drafts this week bc I needed a break from Tumblr life. I'm just not getting a lot of feedback and it's kinda hurting my feelings?? Lol it may just be because im on my . but who knows. anywho, I know this is shorter but it's important to me and showing where these two are at this point in time.
> 
> *Aaron burr voice* welcome folks, to endgame

_ May 18th, 2018. _

Night had fallen over the quiet town of Ransdorp. There were a small number of lights that illuminated the brick lined street, enough to see where you were going, but not enough to peer inside any of the homes that looked out towards the grass field. It was peaceful, just secluded outside of Amsterdam, and a perfect place to lay low. Winter had turned into Spring, and the warm and humid air was just starting to grow unbearable. But it wasn’t too bad. Nothing was ever too bad nowadays.

Two years had passed since that day in Siberia.. Two years since you had seen not only Steve Rogers, but Tony as well. But it felt like it had only been just a few months at most, because you were busy. You were trying to cope with everything you had learned that day.

All you knew that day was that you had to get away. Not only away from the lies and deceit, but away from SHIELD, Ross.. Everything. You were falling apart. Seeing the footage of that day had triggered something in you that you had tried to suppress since the Avengers found you that day forever ago.

It was a mixture of anger, pain, and disgust. And with each passing moment when you left that base in the snow, you started to remember more and more terrible things about your time in Hydra, no scratch that - your time being held captive. So.. You ran. And ended up here in this quiet town.

No cellphone. No computer. No TV. Slowly you filled the small cottage with furniture, careful not to use any of the credit cards Tony had given you to avoid any detection, you lived cash only on small bundles when you could wire them all kinds of different ways. You had made sure to grab as much clothing as you could from the Compound before abandoning the suit, the bracelet and a note along with it, and then did what you do best. Vanish.

_ I love you, Tony. _

_ xxx _

You gave no explanation, no hint as to where you were headed, and were gone much like now - in the night. Walking down the main street of the town, you had to go and grab some more necessities from the small corner shop, which was emptier than usual. With the groceries in the bag on your back, you walked back to the blue colored cottage you called “home” now (though it would never feel that way). Head low, eyes everywhere. Nothing was out of the ordinary besides the absent sound of hissing from the cicadas in the trees. You walked up to the front door and moved to pull your keys from your pocket when you noticed the small crack. You paused, carefully reaching around to pull the gun from the back of your pants.

You know you didn’t leave the door open.

Carefully pulling back the slide and hearing the small click that would be ready when you needed it, you pressed your back up against the door to face the way it opened up, and slowly pushed it open. All the lights you had left on for your return still illuminated the living room down the hall, and so far everything looked untouched. Quietly you took one step after another hugging that hallway until you reached the edge, before leading with the gun in your sights to confront your intruder..

_ Steve. _

Steve was the one your eyes landed on when you cleared the corner. He stood nearly perfectly in the center of the room, dressed casually, repping the fullest beard you had ever seen on him, and looking.. You stopped yourself from saying good. Your first thought after all these years could not be on how nice he looked. He looked troubled though, but you didn’t lower your gun.

“So you’re breaking and entering now?” You asked him. You couldn’t tell if he was thankful you broke the silence first, but you did see him look you over and relax his shoulders a bit.

“This was important. I knew you wouldn’t answer if I knocked.”

“Probably not,” you replied. You lowered your gun and unreadied the cartridge, and turned the safety back on and went back to close and lock your door. When you came back to the main room you instead walked straight into the kitchen, taking your bag off and setting it down. “Whatever it is you’re here to sell, I’m not interested.”

“I’m not here to sell-- Do you even know what’s happened?” Steve asked. He had come closer to the kitchen, standing on the other end of the island that separated you from him. You continued to pull things from your bag and set them out.

“I’m too busy for TV, that’s why I don’t have one Steve,” you said. Steve had noticed, but he stared dumbfounded as you carried on like  _ nothing  _ was going on. Like he wasn’t even there. “I’m almost too busy for this conversation so I’d make it quick--”

“Tony was right,” Steve cut you off. You finally stopped your movements when you heard your brother's name. Steve took a step closer, staring at your back, the back he was so familiar with. “There was something bigger out there. Something we lost to.. Tony he--”

“He what?” You asked suddenly. You had turned around to look at Steve in the eyes, the eyes you often remembered at random points throughout the day. They used to be your eyes, and he used to be your Steve. Steve looked over your face and met your wide eyes and swallowed back his desire to reach out for you.

“He’s in bad shape.. It’s a long story, but I can tell you on the way.”

You hesitated. Steve inwardly cursed at himself that he made you feel this way. He hadn’t stopped thinking about what happened two years ago, no matter where he ended up in the world. All he could think about was where you two would be if he hadn’t done what he did. If he hadn’t had let you leave that day. You nodded a bit though and whispered your answer.

“I’ll pack a bag.”

Steve was right about it being a long story. The Quinjet had been on autopilot for about an hour now, and Steve stood before you watching as you rubbed your hands together.You were trying to wrap your mind around everything he had told you, and rested your arms over the top of your legs. You shifted your head from side to side and let out a sigh.

“So you’re telling me that a purple Titan with complexity issues, gathered these Infinity Stones, and snapped half of the galaxy out of existence. T’Challa, Sam, Wanda, Peter, and Bucky.. And Vision he’s.. Dead? And there’s nothing that can be done?”

“We’re trying to find him,” Steve answered. “There hasn’t been any sighting of him since he disappeared from Wakanda. I’m hoping Nat has answers when we get back.”

“And Tony was in  _ space  _ while the rest of you fought here.. And he’s been gone for almost a month.. And no one thought to reach out sooner?” You asked him. You looked up to meet his gaze, and Steve inhaled sharply when his attention was pulled away by beeping coming from the cockpit. When he disappeared to the front and from what you could tell began to lower the Quinjet to the ground you stood, grabbing the bag you placed by your feet and reaching up for one of the handles to steady yourself when the jet settled on the ground. The whizzing of the engines were dying down when Steve rejoined your side.

“I’m.. I’m glad you agreed to come back,” Steve said. You blinked a couple times while he spoke and reached up to flip a switch that opened the ramp. When your arm fell back to your side you glanced over at Steve, who held your gaze.

“I didn’t come back because  _ you  _ asked me. I came back for Tony.. Don’t think otherwise.”

When you left his side, Steve didn’t say a word. He didn’t move until he could collect himself. Seeing you disappear into the compound past the glass where he could see you made that same familiar regret settle in his heart. Every thought he had for the last two years about you, him, what happened, swirled inside his mind. But there was no time for that, he had to find Natasha and see if anyone had any information on Thanos.

* * *

You didn’t leave Tony’s side for days. If Pepper stepped away, you were still there when she returned. Tony’s side was never unattended, there was always someone in a chair by his side. He would be happy if he knew both of his girls were here with him. But as you woke up with your legs hugged into your chest, you couldn’t help but wonder if that was really true. Would Tony be happy you were here? 

There was a lead on Thanos. Steve had come to tell you both, and all Pepper and you could do was offer nods. But your eyes didn’t leave Tony’s resting form, not even when the team returned what felt like days later. Silence filled the Compound and slowly people began to leave. You settled your legs back to the ground when Pepper came from around you back from the hallway, and offered you a small smile.

“You’ve been in that chair for days,” Pepper started. She settled in the chair on the opposite side of Tony with a mug in her hand. “He’d want you to be rested.”

You knew she was right, but it still took every ounce of your will to pull you out of that chair. It took even more to guide your feet to the door, but you still hesitated at the door frame. You turned back around to face the room, hand gripping at the archway as you watched Pepper stroke the side of Tony’s face. You knew he was in good hands. 

It made it a little easier to finally leave, but it did make you wonder.. Where were you exactly going to go? Your feet carried you towards your old room, but the fact was this place wasn't your home anymore. Not since you left so long ago. But it didn’t stop you from staring at the door before you and hesitantly open it.

The lamp beside your bed was on. Your bed was still undone like you had left it. Curtains drawn, and there were still two imprints in the sheets. It was hard to take two steps inside and look around. It was harder to take enough steps to end up beside the bed you always slept in with.. Steve. You slowly lowered yourself onto your side of the bed and inhaled deeply, ignoring the watchful eyes of the body leaning against the door frame.

“Are you alright?”

“I didn’t think I’d ever be back in this room,” you answered. You ran your hand over the bedding, over the spot Steve had frequented nearly every night. “I was starting to think I’d never see you again.”

Steve had his arms crossed over his body. He was freshly shaven, and watching the way your fingers glided over his spot. He saw how they lingered, could hear the hurt in your voice, and he looked down at the ground. “I didn’t think you wanted me to come looking for you.”

“You thought wrong,” you whispered. Steve’s jaw tightened when he looked back up to see you staring blankly at the bed sheets. He watched as you straightened and then met his gaze. Your eyes looked wet in this dimly lit room when you spoke again. “Did you try?”

You wanted him to say yes. You desperately wanted him to, he could see it in the way you looked over him, how you just sat on edge to hear his voice. He hated disappointing you.

“No.”

You smiled sadly at his answer, and it broke Steve’s heart. You slowly retracted your hand back to your lap and laughed lightly. “Natasha found me six months after I left.”

_ Son of a bitch. _

Well Steve couldn’t say he was entirely surprised. Natasha had an act for doing things without his knowledge, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to talk to her about it. Is that what her “don’t ask” policy was all about? So he wouldn’t ask her where she had been?.. Clever. But like he said, he was going to talk to her about that. Steve pushed himself off the door frame and took a step into the room, not without you noticing. “I’m sorry.”

You let out a quiet hm and stood from your spot on the bed. You didn’t answer him other than you started to strip the bed. You pulled the comforter off and it fell to a pile on the floor, the pillows followed, and you tugged on the sheet covering the bed. Steve was careful to near the other side of where you were working and helped pull the other side off. 

The two former lovers worked in silence to rid the bed of the memories, and to redress it in clean sheets and soft coverings. It was the least Steve could do to help you feel comfortable while you were here, even if he didn’t know how long that would be. Steve left you alone that night, and the countless nights after that until Tony woke up. But everyone was faced with one burning question.

What happens now?


	12. Something New

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im sooo sorry for the wait :( I feel like life is kicking my butt rn but I think I'm almost back on track? anyways, here's a longer chapter, we learn more about what's been happening after the blip

The world post-blip saw a lot of changes. And with you being out of the loop already, there were some important changes you wanted to make sure you didn’t forget.

Natasha became the backbone of the Avengers (though some including you would argue she always had been.) She was the one who stayed at the Compound and worked through the intel she received from the team who was not only spread out over the world, but in space. Yeah you were still getting used to that too.

Steve wasn’t in the game anymore. Not as much, really. He was still Captain America (he’d always be Captain America), but he took a more direct approach with helping people. The last you knew he was running a help group in the city for those who needed the support.

Tony did something that changed your life along with his. He started his own family. A few months after the snap, he was walking by your side through Central Park when he broke the news to you that Pepper and him were going through with the weeding in two weeks. You were shocked, but happy of course.

“We just don’t want to wait anymore,” Tony told you. “Can’t ask her to wait forever on me.”

It was beautiful. Like you pointed out before, Tony liked to be dramatic. But you couldn’t help but shed a tear at seeing your new sister-in-law come down the aisle. Their vows were very much themselves, shared jokes that only they understood (something about 12% Tony told her at the altar.) The only downside to their wedding was going stag, and also having to see Steve there.

Ever since you were hit with the memories of what happened the night of your parents crash, you had these moments of, for lack of a better phrase, pure unfiltered anger. Though those moments were far and few now that you were back to a “normal” life (as normal as this could be) you still found yourself zoning out on occasion. And that wasn’t safe. You couldn’t help but swirl the flute of champagne around as your mind drifted off to your last episode.

_ It was night time, on a full moon no less. The air had a slight chill to it, enough to where you could see the hot breath of air released from your victim. They ran, jumping over the foliage that covered the ground. They were frantic, which made this easier for you. You moved slowly as they tripped over a branch, sliding across the cold ground as you towered over them. The woman cried out, crawling over the leaves scattered over the ground. She didn’t turn to face you until you came to a stop at her feet. You didn’t even recognize the tears in her eyes. _

_ “Пожалуйста,” (Please) she begged you. Your dead set eyes didn’t budge as she pushed herself up to a seated position. “Почему вы это делаете?” (Why are you doing this?) _

_ You clenched your fist by your side, the anger coming up to a boil. “Ты меня не помнишь?” (You don’t remember me?) She shook her head and your eye twitched. You crouched down to look her in the eye and tilted your head. “Ты сказал мне, что поможешь мне почувствовать себя лучше ... И что моя семья идет за мной.” (You told me you’d help me feel better.. And that my family was coming for me.) _

_ Something registered over her face. Fear. Recognition. It all laced together in a paled look on her face. _

_ You stood again as she began to cry. You heard her pleas as you moved behind her, pulling the rope from your hip. Your gloved hands wrapped both ends over your knuckle so it was tight, and in a snap pulled it over her neck. She gasped and writhed under the pressure, but you never once flinched. You never felt her body stop, or her breaths for that matter, and didn’t snap out of it until you were in the shower. You were just standing under the water, which was laced with red, mumbling to yourself. _

_ “I hope you remember them.” _

A hand came down on your shoulder. You did your best to hide your jump, but Tony noticed. He didn’t say anything, but he did see it. He gave you a squeeze and you reached your free hand up to place over it. “I’m glad you’re back.”

“Me too,” you told him. You could see Pepper through the dancing crowd, and you smiled a bit. “You should be dancing with your wife.”

“And you should be enjoying yourself,” Tony replied.

“I will when you do,” you poked at him. He gave your hand a kiss before disappearing past the bodies. You rubbed at your neck and set your drink down at the table before playing with the fabric of your dress. The one slit up your leg was a good choice on Natasha’s part. But it all felt too stuffy. Beautiful lilac color, but just a little too tight around your--

“Didn’t come with anyone?” an all too familiar voice asked you. You flattened the fabric back down and let out a little sigh.

“I don’t really.. Know anyone who wasn’t already coming,” you said. Steve stood before you in a dark suit and lacked the black striped tie he was wearing earlier. He nodded but you shrugged. “I just met Wong though. He’s nice.”

“Yeah he is,” Steve replied. You noticed the song change, something a little slower paced. The lights dimmed down a bit and you shifted a bit in your seat. “Would you like to dance?”

You thought it over for a moment. It seemed like the dance floor was packed, barely anyone was left amongst the tables, and you rubbed your arm. “I don’t really know how to..”

There was a hint of a smile, enough to make your stomach twist, and he offered his hand to you. “Lucky for you I’m a professional.”

You bit back a smile, and slowly placed your hand in his. Steve helped you stand and he led you out to the floor. There was enough space for the two of you, and he turned back to face you. The hand that engulfed yours tightened a bit, his fingers gently grazed over the back of your hand. Your other hand floated over his arm and rested on his shoulder, and you felt his other hand on your waist.

Steve led, taking a step to the side and you followed. You were closer than you would have preferred, but with a glance around the room the lack of space seemed standard. You felt like you were gliding across the floor and you looked back at your partner. “I had no idea you had such a talent.”

“Ah well I had promised Nat I would be prepared the next time I asked someone to dance,” he explained. Steve suddenly removed his hand from your waist and twirled you around. When you met his gaze again you had a raised brow, and when he pulled you back into him you laughed a bit.

“Kudos to her then,” you said barely above a whisper. You felt his fingers seem to rub against your side, and then he spoke softly.

_ “I would do anything for my best gal.” _

There were some more changes that quickly followed within that year.

Tony  _ really  _ started a family. Pepper gave birth to the cutest little girl, and they ended up naming her Morgan. Who had known such a small thing could make you feel so much? You fell in love with her as soon as Tony placed her in your arms. He was teary eyed as he reached out and stroked his finger over her chubby cheek.

You knew he would do anything for this girl. And you were right behind him on that.

It was actually at her first birthday party (though this was more a party for the adults then her) was the next time you saw Steve and Natasha. Her hair was grown out, the fiery red tint mixing in with the previous white dye job. You could see the bags under her eyes and the tension in her shoulders, but after a few drinks she was much more relaxed. Pepper had put Morgan down for a nap, which left Tony, Nat, and you all mingling in a circle while Steve kept his distance.

You were grateful not to have eyes on the back of your head, but you could  _ feel  _ Steve’s burning into you. Tony seemingly got distracted by Pepper, excusing himself from the small and intimate group to aid his wife. Natasha glanced at you from the corner of her eye, taking a sip of the beer in her hand. “So what are you doing nowadays?”

“Besides the occasional diaper change?.. Not much. It’s quiet out here.”

It was true. Tony and Pepper relocated to a cabin outside of the city and the hustle and bustle. You loved Tony, loved being around them both, but you couldn’t help but feel out of place. Or like a bother even. This was Tony’s time to connect to his new family, and you couldn’t help but feel you were intruding. While your thoughts wandered off, Natasha nodded a bit, resting her closest arm to you on the back of the couch, shifting a bit to face you better. “If you wanted.. I could always use your help back at the Compound.”

You glanced back the way Tony had disappeared back into their home. You knew by the way you described it that it was his, not yours, and slowly you nodded. Before you spoke you could see Steve almost smile a bit to himself before turning his back to you. “I.. I think that would be good.”

It’s been four years since the Snap. That was really all the biggest changes you had experienced or felt you needed to catch people up on. Breaking the news to Tony that you were moving back to New York and going back to work with Natasha was a bitter pill for him to swallow, but you reassured him you’d be fine. You needed something to focus your mind on, and he understood for the most part. There was a moment though that made you nearly back out, and Tony had definitely caught it that time.

_ Something had played on tv that night as you helped Tony wash the dinner dishes. Morgan should’ve been in bed by then, Pepper probably waiting for Tony to join her, but Tony truly hadn’t adjusted to using normal appliances. He set off the faucet spray three times, which was two less than last week, so you took over washing duties while he dried. You had only caught a notion of what was being said on the television, but the news anchor speaking made you stop. Tony was chatting next to you, but you turned around to look at the television, only to see the flash of the story playing. _

_ There was a body found in the woods in Russia of a woman in her mid fifties, who was strangled to death with what was identified as rope found nearby. The area was clean of any evidence, especially given how long the body was out there before hunting season started and a couple happened upon it, but it could be linked to three other murders reported on in the last 6 years. You don’t know what happened, but Tony placing his hand on your shoulder was what set you off. _

_ The emptiness that would swallow your mind fell upon you like a curtain closing on a play. Tony would later tell you that the light in your eyes disappeared, and it was as if you didn’t know him. He said that you had very successfully removed his hand from you and shoved him back in the cabinets, rattling the dishes inside. It wasn’t hard enough to hurt him, but it was enough to stun him for a few moments and give you time to desperately escape. _

_ Tony said it took him a few moments to regain his composure, but the worry he felt propelled him out the cabin and out of earshot of Pepper’s calls for him. He wasn’t far behind you, and his calls of your name resulted in nothing but quick looks back at him, but one thing was clear to him: you weren’t okay. The next thing you remembered was something hitting your shoulder in a small jolt, which later Tony confirmed was a shock from his watch (still in testing), and him hovering over you in the darkness. _

It was enough to make him concerned about you going through with your decision to rejoin Natasha. But for you it was enough to solidify your decision.

“Tony I don’t want to.. Do that around Morgan,” you whispered to him, careful with your words. “Besides you need this time with them. And I’m sure Pepper needs you more right now.”

“I can’t knowingly let you leave without even knowing what the hell is going on with you,” Tony whispered yelled at you. “You’ve avoided this conversation for two weeks, can’t you tell me what’s going on?”

You narrowed your glare at him but he only matched you. After a few seconds you grumbled in surrender and rested the last piece of clothing you were folding and walked towards the back door. Tony carefully placed Morgan into the low crib before following you outside. You face the lake, the breeze pushing past you and into the house in a cool breeze, and Tony came up by your side and rested his hip against the railing.

“Talk to me,” he urged you. You sighed and finally faced him, resting your hip as well on the railing.

“After learning the truth I’ve been having these.. Episodes,” you told him. “It’s like a blanket falls over me and I can’t find my way out of it until something else pulls it off. And by that time I’m not where I remember I was. Time has passed, something has happened.”

“How many times has this happened?”

“Last time made five,” you admitted guiltily. “I don’t know what causes it, or how to stop it.. But being busy, keeping my mind on track, seems to help the most.”

Tony thought your words over, before nodding to himself and looking out to the lake. You followed his lead and looked back out to the setting sun, the breeze and chirps of birds lulling the silence, before Tony spoke again.

“If you go you have to check in with me,” Tony compromised. “I’m going to make sure FRIDAY sends me updates on your brain waves, try and figure out what triggers it if it happens again.”

You smiled to yourself and linked your arm through his and came to rest your head against his shoulder. “You’re truly the best brother I could’ve asked for.”

Tony let out a pfft noise, before lifting his arm to wrap around your shoulder. He placed a chaste kiss to your forehead as you both stared out at the lake. “We’ll get through this together.”

Tony wouldn’t admit this to anyone, especially you, but after you departed for the city he made a house call a few days later. Tony stood before the apartment door unsure if this was the best idea, and ready to flee if no one came in 10 more seconds. But when he heard the footsteps on the other side he let out a sigh and mumbled to himself. “This is for her sake Tony.”

The door opened to reveal his former friend. Steve Rogers looked nearly the same as the last time he saw him at Morgan’s party (which he was only invited to because of Pepper and Natasha.) Full beard, tired eyes, and a surprised expression. “Tony?”

Tony motioned between the two of them with the glasses he pulled off while waiting. “We need to talk.”

Steve took a moment to think it over before nodding and stepping aside for Tony to enter. Tony carefully took a step in, taking in the environment and really noticing how.. Empty it all felt. Steve closed and latched the door behind his guest, which made Tony look back at him. “Should maybe leave that unlock in case anything happens.”

“I don’t think that would be necessary,” Steve replied. But either way he unlocked the latch before looking back at Tony. “But if it makes you more comfortable.”

“It was more for you then for me,” Tony replied back. Steve smiled a bit and nodded, and Tony tapped his hand with his glasses. “Gotta say the place hasn’t come along that much since you showed Pepper the photos.”

“You saw those?” Steve asked and Tony shrugged. Steve looked around and sighed a bit. “Was never planning on settling down here, but things change.”

Tony wondered if the sentiment was in regards to his sister. More than likely it was but he chose to ignore it. He didn’t even want to think about the unsettling feeling he had when he thought about how Steve handled things all those years ago. “I wanted to come and talk to you about something.. Personal.”

Steve raised a brow and crossed his arms over his chest. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes and no,” Tony sighed. He sat himself down on the couch in Steve’s plainly decorated living room, and unbuttoned his jacket in the process. “Not sure if you are aware given you aren’t in the game anymore, but Natasha invited my sister back to the Compound.. And she said yes.”

“Natasha may have mentioned it,” Steve carefully said.

“Figured as much, “ Tony replied. “Which is great, fine with me. I know she’s been feeling stuck recently.. But something happened a couple weeks ago.”

Steve’s posture changed and it unsettled Tony. But he had to punish that aside for now. This wasn’t about him and his feelings. “Is she okay?”

“I don’t know,” Tony answered in almost a whisper. Steve’s face visibly fell in a frown and concern. “She’s apparently been experiencing black outs. Aggression. I don’t know how to help her from so far away.. So I came to ask a favor.”

Steve nodded and took a step closer. “Whatever you need Tony.”

“Check in on her will you? But not in a prying way so she thinks I set you up to it.. Be a friend, “ Tony asked. Steve nodded and Tony stood, smoothing his clothes again. “Just please.. Let me know if something happens.”

“I promise,” Steve told him. He led Tony back to the door, opening it for him to exit. But Tony stopped after making it out to the hallway and turned back around pointing a finger at Steve’s chest.

“So help me Rogers.. Don’t go and mess with her feelings again or I will come here and finish what we started in Siberia.”

Steve didn’t even get a chance to respond before Tony slid his glasses back on and disappeared back towards the stairs. Instead Steve shut his door and stood there for a moment to think to himself. He was going to make sure he made it up not only to Tony, but to you. 

This would be the start of something new.

  
  



End file.
